DEFENCE

AWE Aldermaston

Caroline Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence 
	(1)  whether any (a) radioactive materials, (b) explosives and (c) hazardous chemicals were present in the building at the Atomic Weapons Establishment in which a fire occurred on 12 April 2012;
	(2)  how many (a) firefighting personnel and (b) fire appliances attended the incident at the Atomic Weapons Establishment on 12 April 2012;
	(3)  what the cause was of the fire at the Atomic Weapons Establishment on 12 April 2012 attended by the Royal Berkshire Fire and Rescue Service; in which facility the incident occurred; what the extent was of any damage caused; and if he will make a statement.

Andrew Robathan: The fire at the Atomic Weapons Establishment (AWE) Aldermaston on 12 April 2012 was caused by the ignition of bearing grease within the ventilation extraction system of an AWE manufacturing facility. The resulting damage was localised to the fan itself. A total of 17 fire fighting personnel and three fire appliances attended the incident.
	There were no radioactive materials or explosives present in the building where the fire occurred. Hazardous material was present in the building, but not in the part where the fire occurred. At no point was there any risk to the health of staff or the public.

Marchwood Sea Mounting Centre

Angus Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what plans he has for the future of the Marchwood Sea Mounting Centre.

Andrew Robathan: I refer the hon. Member to the statement made by the then Minister for Defence Equipment, Support and Technology, my hon. Friend the Member for Mid Worcestershire (Peter Luff), on 12 July 2012, Official Report, columns 41-42WS, in which he updated the House on the plan for Marchwood Sea Mounting Centre.

Marchwood Sea Mounting Centre

Angus Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will estimate the value of the Marchwood Sea Mounting Centre.

Andrew Robathan: We do not routinely assess the current market value of our estate because the estimated receipts will depend on market conditions and other factors at the time of sale. Where pre-sale valuations have been obtained, these are regarded as commercially confidential and are thus not released ahead of the sale in case they influence the market.

Olympic Games 2012: Security

Andrew Turner: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many weapons were used to defend the London 2012 Olympics from the air; what their locations were; and which areas in Greater London were undefended.

Andrew Robathan: holding answer 5 September 2012
	The Home Office, through the police, had lead responsibility for ensuring the safety and security of the Olympic Games. The Ministry of Defence supported them and other civil and Olympic authorities, in a number of areas.
	The air security of the entire United Kingdom including Greater London and its approaches is protected at all times by a multi-layered approach, including Quick Reaction Alert Typhoon aircraft based at RAF Coningsby and RAF Leuchars. The additional air security measures put in place for the Olympics built on those arrangements, to provide a flexible and proportionate response to protect the Olympic sites alongside Greater London and the rest of the United Kingdom.
	The Olympic Air Security Plan included civil airspace restrictions around the Olympic sites, additional Typhoon aircraft at RAF Northolt and helicopters carrying RAF Regiment snipers based on HMS Ocean moored at Greenwich and at Ilford TA Centre. In the London area, Ground-Based Air Defence Rapier were also deployed to Barn Hill, William Girling Reservoir, Blackheath, and Oxleas Meadows, supplemented by High Velocity Missile systems deployed at the Fred Wigg Tower and Lexington Building.

Royal Regiment of Fusiliers

Richard Burden: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence 
	(1)  what criteria he used to make the decision to disband the second battalion of the Royal Regiment of Fusiliers;
	(2)  what representations he has received on his Department's proposal to disband the second battalion of the Royal Regiment of Fusiliers.

Andrew Robathan: holding answer 5 September 2012
	Against a backdrop of needing to remove five battalions from the infantry order of battle as part of the wider Army 2020 structure, a number of criteria were applied by the Army which were: maintaining a regimental system which is largely regionally aligned; demographic sustainability of regiments according to projected regional supply of recruits; proportionality of outcome, with no cap badge deletions and no regiment losing more than one battalion in a re-organisation; balancing the whole infantry structure to maintain variety of roles and parity of opportunity of experience for officers and soldiers; taking account of previous decisions on mergers and deletions; historical manning performance; and ensuring a solution that the Army would see as fair and equitable.
	Based on demographic data available from the Office for National Statistics for the age cohort across the UK from which infantry recruits are drawn and historical trends in terms of the percentage of that cohort likely to join the Army, an assessment was made of which regiments were likely to be the least sustainable in the future if they retained their current structure. This work also included a comparison of each regiment's historical outflow so the likely recruiting requirement could be determined.
	The analysis showed that those regiments likely to be the least sustainable in future were the Royal Regiment of Scotland (predicted to be 1.75 battalions short), The Yorkshire Regiment (predicted to be 0.8 battalions short), The Mercian Regiment (predicted to be 0.56 battalions short) and the Royal Welsh Regiment (predicted to be 0.55 battalions short). It was therefore decided to remove one battalion from each of those regiments.
	After the removal of four battalions, the method for predicting future sustainability became less statistically discerning. Therefore, to determine the fifth battalion to be removed from the order of battle, application of criteria that went wider than demographics was required. Historical manning performance and the need to maintain equity of opportunity meant that the Royal Regiment of Fusiliers (a two battalion regiment with average historical under-manning of 13.3% since the previous reorganisation of the infantry in 2007) was the next appropriate regiment from which to withdraw a battalion.
	The analysis showed that after the withdrawal of five battalions from across the infantry, future manning should be sustainable with sufficient recruits predicted to fill the necessary posts.
	To date, the Department has received around 35 representations from Members of Parliament, members of the public and one borough council in relation to the decision to withdraw The 2nd Battalion The Royal Regiment of Fusiliers.

Trident

Jeremy Corbyn: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how much his Department has spent on long lead orders for Trident replacement submarines and nuclear weapons since May 2010.

Philip Hammond: To date, the Ministry of Defence (MOD) has spent £17.033 million on long lead items for the successor submarines. This spend is associated with the development of the Pressurised Water Reactor 3 plant to be used in the submarines.
	The MOD has not spent any money on long lead items for nuclear weapons. The Strategic Defence and Security Review determined that a replacement warhead would not be required until the 2030s. Therefore the decision to refurbish or replace the existing warhead will not be required until the next Parliament.

Unmanned Air Vehicles

Stephen Pound: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many individuals not classified as insurgents were killed by UK operated UAVs in (a) 2010 and (b) 2011.

Andrew Robathan: I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave as Minister for Defence Personnel, Welfare and Veterans on 11 July 2011, Official Report, column 52W, to the hon. Member for Brighton, Pavilion (Caroline Lucas) and to the answer given by the previous Minister for the Armed Forces, the hon. Member for North Devon (Nick Harvey), on 26 June 2012, Official Report , column 187W, to the hon. Member for Birmingham, Hall Green (Mr Godsiff).

Warships

Angus Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many ships of each type are deployed on operations or exercises.

Andrew Robathan: As of 4 September 2012, the number of ships of each type deployed on operations or exercise is shown in the following tables:
	
		
			 Ships on operations 
			 Type of ship Number 
			 Landing Platform Dock 1 
			 Landing Platform Helicopter 1 
			 Type 42 Destroyers 1 
			 Type 45 Destroyers 2 
			 Type 23 Frigates 5 
			 Mine Counter Measure Vessels (Hunt) 4 
			 Mine Counter Measure Vessels (Sandown) 2 
			 River Class 4 
			 P2000 Patrol Craft (Archer) 6 
			 P2000 Patrol Craft (Scimitar) 2 
			 Survey/Patrol Ships 3 
		
	
	
		
			 Ships on exercise 
			 Type of ship Number 
			 Type 42 Destroyers 1 
			 Type 45 Destroyers 1 
			 Type 23 Frigates 5 
			 Mine Counter Measure Vessels (Hunt) 2 
			 Mine Counter Measure Vessels (Sandown) 1 
		
	
	This information will change on a constant basis as ships move through their operational, training and maintenance cycles to meet operational requirements.

PRIME MINISTER

Ministerial Policy Advisers

Keith Vaz: To ask the Prime Minister how many special advisers in post as at 17 July 2012 were (a) women and (b) from ethnic minorities.

David Cameron: An updated list of special advisers, and their pay bands, is published quarterly. This is available on the Cabinet Office website:
	http://www.cabinetoffice.gov.uk/resource-library/special-adviser-data-releases
	Details of special advisers' ethnicity are not held centrally.

TRANSPORT

A3: Hampshire

Damian Hinds: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport pursuant to the answer of 16 July 2012, Official Report, column 488W, on A3: Hampshire, what progress the Highways Agency has made in sending out the outcome of its investigations at all important areas with first priority locations on the A3 in East Hampshire to the relevant local authorities, as required by the noise action plans, during summer 2012.

Stephen Hammond: The Highways Agency will be sending out the reports containing the outcomes of their investigations of each important area with first priority locations on the A3 in East Hampshire to the relevant local authorities between 14 and 28 September 2012.

Airports

Laurence Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what recent estimate he has made of the capacity to which each UK airport is operating; and if he will make a statement.

Simon Burns: The Department for Transport's latest assessments of airport capacity are included in ‘UK Aviation Forecasts 2011’.
	These assume that no new runways are built in the UK but, where there is no explicit planning prohibition, airports develop as necessary to utilise their current potential runway capacity.
	Details of the capacity assumptions used are available in Table 2.6 of the published report, available on the Department for Transport's website.

Correspondence

Lyn Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what the average time taken was by his Department to reply to correspondence from hon. Members and Peers in the last 12 months; and for what proportion of letters the time taken to send a response was longer than (a) one month, (b) six weeks, (c) two months, (d) three months and (e) six months in that period.

Norman Baker: The average time taken by the Department for Transport to respond to 12,404 items of correspondence received from hon. Members and Peers in the 12 months since the 30 August 2011 was 19.6 working days.
	The proportions of responses taking longer than one month are as follows:
	(a) longer than one month—31% of responses
	(b) longer than six weeks—12.5% of responses
	(c) longer than two months—8.5% of responses
	(d) longer than three months—3% of responses
	(e) longer than six months—0.4% of responses.
	The Cabinet Office, on an annual basis, publishes a report to Parliament on the performance of Departments in replying to Members' and Peers' correspondence. The report for 2011 was published on 15 March 2012, Official Report, columns 31-33WS.

Licensing

Richard Fuller: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what permits and licences his Department and its public bodies issue to businesses.

Stephen Hammond: The Department for Transport (DFT) and its executive agencies issue a wide range of licences to businesses. These are central to delivering the Government's transport priorities and services.
	There is no central list of permits and licences issued, but a table has been placed in the Libraries of the House of such examples we have gathered information from across DFT and its agencies. However, this should not be considered an exhaustive list.
	Two independent regulators, the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) and the Office of Rail Regulation (ORR) also issue permissions and approvals.

Motorcycles: Young People

Laurence Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport for what reason he plans to place restrictions on the types of motorcycles which may be ridden by 17 to 20 year olds but not on the types of cars they may drive; and if he will make a statement.

Stephen Hammond: Member states are currently governed by the Second Directive on Driving Licences, adopted in 1991. In essence, this provided for mutual recognition of driving licences between EU states, the harmonisation of the licence categories and harmonisation of driving test standards. The Third Directive on Driving Licences (2006/126/EC) was adopted in 2006 and comes fully into effect on 19 January 2013. Its provisions have been transposed into law through the Motor Vehicles (Driving Licences) (Amendment) Regulations 2012 and laid before Parliament on 30 March 2012.
	The Third Directive makes further change to achieve greater harmonisation across the EU within a specified timeframe. The main changes impact on definitions of vehicle categories (including motorcycles) and sub-categories, the rules on the duration of the validity of a licence, minimum standards for driving examiners and attempts to ensure that no one can at any one time possess more than one licence issued by an EU state.
	It introduces new categories for motorcycles which will apply from 19 January 2013. There are new categories for mopeds, and small, medium and unlimited size motorbikes—Categories AM, A1, A2 and A respectively. Under the provisions a rider can progress from a smaller to a larger bike:
	Through stages (“staged access”) for example at age 17 with entitlement to Category A1 gaining two years experience and then applying for Category A2), gaining a further two years experience at Category A2 and then applying for Category A (unrestricted access to any size bike).
	Through “direct access”—that is waiting until they meet the minimum age for a specific category. Through this route, direct access to Category A riders must be at least age 24.
	Or a combination of both.
	The changes in the minimum age for motorcycle categories are shown in the following table.
	
		
			  Current licensing category Current minimum age  New licensing category New minimum age 
			 P Mopeds—national category, two wheeled vehicles with a maximum design speed not exceeding 50km/h per hour. 16 AM Two or three-wheel vehicles with a maximum design speed not exceeding 45 km/h. (excluding vehicles with a maximum design speed under or equal to 25 km/h) and light quads (up to 4kW power) 16 
			       
			 Al Light Motorcycle not exceeding 125cc and power output not exceeding 11 kw. 17 Al Light motorcycle not exceeding 125 cc and power output not exceeding 11 kw and a power/weight ratio not exceeding 0.1 kw/kg Under a licence for Al can ride Motor-tricycles with a power not exceeding 15 kw 17 
			       
			 Small A Motorcycles up to 25 kw (33 bhp), motorcycle combination with a power to weight ratio not exceeding 0.16 W/kg. 17 A2 Motorcycles not exceeding 35 kw and with a power to weight ratio not exceeding 0.2 W/kg and not derived from a vehicle more than double its power 19 
			       
			 A Any size motorcycle with or without sidecar. (1)21 A Any size motorcycle with or without sidecar (2)21 
			     Under a licence for A can ride Motor-tricycles with a power output exceeding 15 kw (3)24 
			 (1 )Under direct access. (2) Staged Access. (3) Direct Access.

Railways: Wales

Jonathan Edwards: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport 
	(1)  what estimate he has made of the potential cost of electrifying the North Wales Main Line from Chester to Holyhead;
	(2)  what recent discussions his Department has had with the Welsh Government about electrification of the North Wales Main Line from Chester to Holyhead.

Simon Burns: Recent discussions with the Welsh Government have focused on the electrification of routes in South Wales. The rail industry did not propose electrification of the North Wales Main Line from Chester to Holyhead for delivery in the 2014-19 period and it was not included in the High Level Output Specification (HLOS) published in July. If studies by the industry into the costs and benefits of electrifying this route demonstrate a strong business case, it could be considered for inclusion in a future HLOS.

Scotland

Margaret Curran: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport on what date he last had a bilateral meeting with the Secretary of State for Scotland; and what matters were discussed.

Norman Baker: The Secretary of State for Transport and the Secretary of State for Scotland meet regularly to discuss a range of topics.

Tyres

David Morris: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport whether he plans to make it his policy to make the minimum depth for tread on tyres 3 mm.

Stephen Hammond: I have no plans to change the UK minimum tyre tread depth. The current level of 1.6 mm for car tyres aligns with the harmonised minimum requirements under EU legislation (directive 89/459/EC).

EDUCATION

Human Papilloma Virus: Vaccination

Diane Abbott: To ask the Secretary of State for Education how many girls received the HPV vaccine in schools in each of the last five years; and whether he plans to take steps to increase the uptake of the vaccine.

Daniel Poulter: I have been asked to reply 
	on behalf of the Department of Health.
	The human papilloma virus (HPV) vaccination programme began in September 2008, and has been undertaken for girls aged 12 to 13 every year since. Vaccinations have also been undertaken as part of routine and catch-up programmes, with some girls receiving vaccine under more than one programme or in more than one setting.
	Due to the method of data collection, it is not possible to provide the exact number of girls who received HPV vaccine in schools for each year. However, data such as are available are provided as follows.
	Under the routine programme, four primary care trusts (PCTs) in the academic year 2008-09 and two PCTs in each of the academic years 2009-10, 2010-11 and 2011-12 offered vaccine through a general practitioner (GP) based programme. The vast majority of girls receive HPV immunisation in school (Table 1). These data exclude any HPV vaccines received late, through mop-up programmes, as these could have been given through a schools based programme, by GPs or both.
	Between September 2008 and July 2011 a catch-up vaccination programme for older girls 13 years of age up to 18 years of age, offered vaccine in schools, GP practices and community clinics. In 2008-09 more than 60% of PCTs offered vaccine through GP practices to the oldest catch-up cohort, 17 to 18 years of age, as many would not have been attending school
	
		
			 Table 1: Routine cohort, School year 8 girls aged 12 to 13 years 
			 Academic year Total number of girls in routine cohort Girls receiving at least one dose Girls receiving at least two doses Girls received all three doses 
			 2011-12(1) 293,721 263,156 255,676 238,257 
			 2010-11 297,392 258,509 254,598 245,598 
			 2009-10 304,073 250,438 244,595 228,001 
			 2008-09 303,361 257,809 251,784 235,491 
			 (1) Provisional data, the number of doses of HPV vaccine delivered through schools based programmes evaluated at the end of each academic year. 
		
	
	
		
			 Table 2: HPV vaccine delivery settings for catch-up programme in England up to 2009-10 
			   Total number of doses administered by location type 
			   In schools/ colleges In GP practices In health centres/ community clinics In other 
			 Cohort Age No. % No. % No. % No. % 
			 Catch Up Cohort 6 14 to 15 years 611,601 90.9 47,478 7.1 12,035 1.8 1,896 0.3 
			 Catch Up Cohort 5 15 to 16 years 615,579 90.1 52,012 7.6 12,833 1.9 2,534 0.4 
			 Catch Up Cohort 4 16 to 17 years 201,443 41.2 252,021 51.5 31,742 6.5 4,198 0.9 
			 Catch Up Cohort 3 17 to 18 years 162,461 34.6 267,679 57.0 35,350 7.5 4,119 0.9 
		
	
	Data on HPV vaccination are published for each academic year and are available on the Department's website. Copies of these have been placed in the Library.
	The latest data from June 2012 show that 82.6% of girls in school year 8 in England received the full three doses of the HPV vaccine. This is one of the highest coverage rates in the world. The Department continues to encourage the NHS to maintain the upward trend in vaccine coverage.

Science: Higher Education

Esther McVey: To ask the Secretary of State for Education how many students who received free school meals went on to study science and engineering courses at university in the latest period for which figures are available.

David Willetts: I have been asked to reply 
	on behalf of the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills.
	An estimated 14,380 English maintained schools pupils, who received free school meals at age 15 in 2005/06, entered higher education by age 19 in 2009/10. Of these, it is estimated that 5,480 were studying Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) subjects. This includes those studying more than one main subject where this includes a STEM subject.

SCOTLAND

Correspondence

Lyn Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland what the average time taken was by his Department to reply to correspondence from hon. Members and Peers in the last 12 months; and for what proportion of letters the time taken to send a response was longer than (a) one month, (b) six weeks, (c) two months, (d) three months and (e) six months in that period.

David Mundell: All letters received by Ministers in the Scotland Office are dealt with appropriately. The average time taken by the Department to reply to correspondence from hon. Members and peers in the last 12 months was 10 working days. The proportion of letters for which the time taken to send a response was longer than one month or more is set out in the following table:
	
		
			 Correspondence answered after: Proportion (percentage) 
			 One month 1 
			 Six weeks 1 
			 Two months 0 
			 Three months 0 
			 Six months 0 
			 Note: These figures are noncumulative. 
		
	
	The Cabinet Office publishes a report to Parliament on an annual basis on the performance of Departments in replying to Members' correspondence. The report for 2011 was published on 15 March 2012, Official Report, columns 30-33WS. Reports for earlier years are available in the Library of the House.

FOREIGN AND COMMONWEALTH AFFAIRS

Bangladesh

Sadiq Khan: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what official communication his Department has had with representatives of the Bangladesh Government on the Muslim Rohingya in the last six months.

Alistair Burt: The High Commission in Dhaka raises the Rohingya issue regularly with senior interlocutors in the Bangladesh Government. The high commissioner, Robert Gibson, wrote to the Bangladesh Prime Minister's Office about this issue on 15 August. The Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, my right hon. Friend the Member for Richmond (Yorks) (Mr Hague), also raised this issue during a meeting with the Bangladesh Prime Minister, Sheikh Hasina, on 28 July, and the former Secretary of State for the Department for International Development, my right hon. Friend the Member for Sutton Coldfield (Mr Mitchell), raised it in a meeting with her on 12 August.
	We have also raised the issue of Rohingya refugees with the Government of Bangladesh as part of a recent EU démarche.
	The Secretary of State issued a statement on 13 August, which expressed deep concern at the ongoing violence in Rakhine State in Burma. It called on all parties to act with restraint, and urged the authorities and community leaders to open discussions to end the violence and protect all members of the local population.

Burma

Sadiq Khan: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what assessment he has made of the findings of the report by Human Rights Watch, The Government Could Have Stopped This: Sectarian Violence and Ensuing Abuses in Burma's Arakan State; and if he will make a statement.

Hugo Swire: We are familiar with the detailed, thorough and informative report by Human Rights Watch, entitled ‘The Government Could Have Stopped This: Sectarian Violence and Ensuing Abuses in Burma's Arakan State’. Foreign and Commonwealth Office officials met a representative from Human Rights Watch on 21 August to discuss the content of the report.
	We continue to draw on credible reporting from a range of sources to support our own assessment of the troubling and complex situation in Rakhine State. An official from the British embassy in Rangoon visited the state as part of a government-organised tour for the diplomatic corps on 31 July-1 August. I refer the right hon. Member to my answer given today to PQ 118697.

Burma

Sadiq Khan: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what recent assessment he has made of the state of bilateral relations with Burma; and if he will make a statement.

Hugo Swire: Given the significant political reform taking place in Burma, our policy has shifted from isolation, to cautious engagement. This is because we believe that the goal of achieving lasting change in Burma stands more chance of being realised if we and the international community engage with all parties in Burma to help embed reform.
	We have not forgotten the many other issues that remain unresolved in Burma. As well as the ongoing ethnic conflicts, a significant number of political detainees remain in prison and legislative reform in a number of areas is necessary and pressing. We believe that should President Thein Sein accept the Prime Minister's invitation to visit to the UK, it will be a valuable opportunity to continue the Prime Minister's dialogue with the President and to stress the need to resolve the many issues outstanding.

Burma

Sadiq Khan: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what official communication his Department has had with representatives of the Burmese government on the Muslim Rohingya in the last six months.

Hugo Swire: Following the recent outbreak of violence, the then Minister of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, the hon. Member for Taunton Deane (Mr Browne), issued a statement on 10 June which expressed our deep concern about the situation and urged all groups to open a dialogue to end the violence. On 12 June our ambassador met Burmese President Thein Sein and urged him to make every effort to resolve the situation peacefully. We have continued to raise our concerns with senior members of the Burmese Government at every opportunity.
	On 1 August, the Foreign and Commonwealth Office's (FCO) Director for Asia Pacific met the Burmese ambassador to discuss the situation, and again repeated our concerns, including the need to resolve the issue of nationality.

Burma

Sadiq Khan: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what discussions he has had with Burmese officials during his recent visit to Rangoon on the Muslim Rohingya.

Hugo Swire: On 16 January 2012, my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, issued a written ministerial statement to update the House regarding his visit to Burma on 5-6 January,Official Report, columns 27-28WS.
	During the visit the Secretary of State raised with the Foreign Minister the discrimination suffered by the Rohingya community, who have been denied citizenship and access to basic services and rights.
	The Secretary of State also met a range of representatives from ethnic communities, including the Kachin, Rohingya, Shan, Rakhine, Chin, Mon, Karen and Karenni to hear more about their concerns and aspirations.

Burma

Sadiq Khan: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what steps the Government is taking to prevent the persecution of Muslim Rohingya in Burma.

Hugo Swire: We have repeatedly called for the Burmese Government to take measures to put an end to the recent inter-communal violence in Rakhine State, to allow unhindered humanitarian access to the areas affected and a resumption of humanitarian work provided by the international community upon which many hundreds of thousands of Rohingya are dependent, to resolve the issue of nationality and to grant the full respect for human rights to all the people of Burma, notably the Rohingya.
	Since the statement of 10 June, in which the then Minister of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, the hon. Member for Taunton Deane (Mr Browne), expressed our deep concern about the hostilities in Rakhine state, Foreign and Commonwealth Office officials in Rangoon and in London have raised our concerns with senior members of the Burmese Government and with our international partners. Ministers also discussed the issues affecting the Rohingya with the Bangladeshi Prime Minster during their meetings in late July following reports that refugees fleeing the violence were being turned away when attempting to cross the border from Burma into Bangladesh.
	In a statement released on 13 August, following the visit to Burma of the UN Special Rapporteur for Burma, Mr Tomas Quintana, the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, my right hon. Friend the member for Richmond (Yorks) (Mr Hague), highlighted our concerns and stated that the UK stood ready to assist the Government of Burma in its efforts to develop Rakhine state as Burma continues on its path to democracy.
	In the wake of the Secretary of State's statement, the Government of Burma announced that it would establish an independent Investigative Commission to probe the violence in Rakhine. The Burmese Government also released a number of UN and NGO staff detained in connection with the violence. In a statement released on 20 August, we welcomed this development, but made clear that for the Commission to be credible, it needed to involve a consultative process with all of the affected communities, including the Rohingya.

Burma

Jeremy Lefroy: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what steps he is taking to urge the government of Burma to recognise the citizenship of Rohingya people whose families have lived in Burma for generations.

Hugo Swire: For many years the British Government have been a strong supporter of those in Burma pursuing democracy and respect for human rights. We have consistently called for discrimination against the Rohingya to end and for their rights to be recognised.
	The United Kingdom has long been one of the most active and vocal members of the international community in raising these concerns with the Burmese authorities. We have also continued to raise the issue in international institutions such as the UN Human Rights Council where, in March of this year, we strongly supported a resolution which made clear to the Burmese Government the urgent need to resolve the issue of nationality for the Rohingya community.

Burma

Jeremy Lefroy: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what steps he is taking to urge the Government of Burma to allow unhindered access for the UN and international humanitarian aid agencies and human rights organisations to all areas of Arakan State to assess the situation and monitor the distribution of humanitarian aid on the basis of need and without discrimination.

Hugo Swire: Through both our bilateral relations and through international forums, such as the United Nations, we have called repeatedly for the Burmese Government to take measures to put an end to the recent inter-communal violence in Rakhine (Arakan) State and to allow unhindered humanitarian access to the areas affected.
	The UK has long provided humanitarian assistance to Rohingya communities in both Burma's Rakhine State and Bangladesh through core support to the European Commission Humanitarian Aid Department and United Nations agencies, as well as to all communities across Rakhine State through our major investments in health, education and livelihoods.

Burma

Jeremy Lefroy: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what recent discussions he has had with the Government of Burma on the situation in Arakan State.

Hugo Swire: Ministers continue to raise their concerns about the lack of respect for human rights in Burma at every opportunity, most recently during the Prime Minister's visit to Burma in April, which included the need to release all remaining political prisoners and to establish a credible process of reconciliation with all ethnic groups in Burma. Foreign and Commonwealth Office officials in Rangoon and in London have raised our concerns with senior members of the Burmese Government, and with our international partners.
	Ministers have also issued three separate public statements on the situation in Rakhine (Arakan) State since the violence began in June.

Commonwealth Youth Exchange Council

Charlotte Leslie: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what assessment he has made of the potential effects on community organisations of the reduction in funding for the Commonwealth Youth Exchange Council.

Hugo Swire: I welcome the Commonwealth Youth Exchange Council's (CYEC) work in providing Commonwealth focussed advice, training, and educational materials to young people and youth organisations, as well as organising exchanges between youth groups in the UK and in other Commonwealth countries.
	The British Council have had to review their relationships with partners, including CYEC. In the last two years, they have been in dialogue with CYEC about making their relationship more strategic and sustainable. CYEC continues to be a valued partner for the British Council, and there remain opportunities for CYEC to work with the British Council in the future.
	The British Council are fully committed to working with partners to develop and secure educational and other opportunities for young people, including in the Commonwealth, and this is at the heart of the British Council's strategy for their work in education and society.

Democratic Republic of the Congo

Tom Blenkinsop: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what steps he is taking to monitor the human rights and safety of failed asylum seekers returning to the Democratic Republic of the Congo.

Hugo Swire: The Foreign and Commonwealth Office continues to monitor the human rights situation in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC). We are aware of reports of allegations that failed asylum seekers from the DRC have been subject to mistreatment on return, but the FCO and the Home Office have found no reliable evidence to substantiate these allegations. Should the Foreign and Commonwealth Office or UKBA receive any specific allegations that a returnee has experienced harm or ill-treatment after being returned to the DRC from the UK, these allegations would be investigated in partnership with UKBA.

Diplomatic Service

Simon Kirby: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what assessment his Department has made of the effect of the introduction of its Diplomatic Excellence Programme.

David Lidington: Our framework for measuring diplomatic excellence combines both internal and external assessment to reach a score which is reported annually. Our approach has been validated by the Office for National Statistics and endorsed by the Cabinet Office.
	Our benchmark score for 2011-12 has been assessed externally as 6.8/10 and the panel perceived we were second to France on the ‘best Diplomatic service in the world' ranking. Our aim is to achieve at least 7/10 by end FY 2012-13 and to be the best diplomatic service in the world by 2015.

Embassies

Henry Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what discussions his Department has with foreign embassies and high commissions in the UK of (a) member countries of the Commonwealth and EU and (b) other countries on the importance of assisting hon. Members with relevant constituent enquiries.

Mark Simmonds: Ministers and officials have regular discussions with foreign Heads of Mission on a range of issues, including working with the UK Parliament and hon. Members.

Ethiopia

Karen Lumley: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what steps he is taking to help authorities in Ethiopia to ensure a stable transfer of power with an improvement in human rights conditions and democratic accountability following the death of President Meles Zenawi.

Mark Simmonds: Promoting democratic governance and human rights in Ethiopia will continue to be a key HMG objective. We will seek to support a peaceful transition and look forward to working with Acting Prime Minister Hailemariam. We will pursue an open and honest dialogue on human rights with him and his government.

European Commission

Mark Pritchard: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will publish the timetable for the publication of the shortlist of the Government's nomination for EU Commissioner from June 2014.

David Lidington: Established practice is that there is no publication of a shortlist of nominees for British European Commissioners.

European Court of Human Rights

Philip Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will make it his policy that the UK will not make any discretionary payment to the European Court of Human Rights to assist that court to clear its backlog of cases; and if he will make a statement.

David Lidington: We have taken no decision on whether to make a contribution to the Council of Europe Secretary-General's Special Fund for the European Court of Human Rights. A decision will not be taken before October 2012.

European Economic and Social Committee

Therese Coffey: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how UK members of the Economic and Social Committee are nominated for appointment.

David Lidington: The European Economic and Social Committee (EESC) includes representatives from across society from three distinct groups. The Department for Business, Innovation and Skills is responsible for Group 1 (employees) and Group 2 (employers) and the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) is responsible for UK nominations to Group 3 (other interests).
	The nomination process in the FCO invites applicants to submit written bids for a position. The FCO assesses these bids against the following criteria:
	(1) Relevant knowledge and experience;
	(2) Ability to contribute effectively to the work of the EESC;
	(3) Ability to be effectively representative as a member of the UK Delegation (for both the UK and respective sector);
	(4) Current or recent engagement in their field.
	The FCO then identifies the most suitable candidate for nomination on that basis. The decision is then put forward for ministerial approval.

European Union

Simon Kirby: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what the names are of the contributors to his Department's review of the balance of EU competencies.

David Lidington: As the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, my right hon. Friend the Member for Richmond (Yorks) (Mr Hague), announced to the House on 12 July 2012, Official Report, column 469, unless there is a good reason to the contrary, we expect to make all evidence submitted publicly available. Guidance is still being finalised and the details will be announced this autumn.

Gambia

Anna Soubry: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what representations he has received from campaign groups on the case of Gambian national, Brigadier General O. B. Mbye.

Mark Simmonds: We have not received any representation from campaign groups regarding the specific case of Brigadier-General Mbye, although we have received representations about the death penalty in The Gambia, and the recent executions.
	We have followed General Mbye's case closely since his arrest and trial for treason, at which he was found guilty and handed the death penalty. The British Government has made representations to the Government of The Gambia, both in London and Banjul, on behalf of Brigadier-General Mbye and against the death penalty.

Gambia

Anna Soubry: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what steps his Department is taking following the announcement that people sentenced to death in The Gambia will be executed in September; and if he will make a statement.

Mark Simmonds: Following President Jammeh's pledge to execute all death-row prisoners in The Gambia, our high commissioner in Banjul immediately raised his concerns with the then-Gambian Foreign Minister. On hearing of the execution of nine prisoners, the Under-Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, my hon. Friend the Member for North East Bedfordshire (Alistair Burt), issued a statement expressing the British Government's concern, and calling for a halt to any further executions. Our high commissioner in Banjul has made representations to senior members of the Gambian Government to convey the strength of our concerns, including on behalf of the EU. Senior officials in London also made our position clear to the Gambian high commissioner in London. We will continue to apply appropriate pressure on the Government of The Gambia to help prevent further executions.

India

Tom Blenkinsop: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs whether he has made representations to his Indian counterpart on the abolition of the death penalty; and what discussions he has had with his Commonwealth counterparts on the death penalty in India.

Hugo Swire: It is the longstanding policy of successive British Governments to oppose the death penalty, in all circumstances, as a matter of principle. We regularly make our position clear to the Government of India, both bilaterally and through the European Union, and urge them to introduce a formal moratorium.
	In 2011, the then Minister of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, the hon. Member for Taunton Deane (Mr Browne), raised the death penalty with the then Foreign Secretary Nirupama Rao in June and with Minister of State for External Affairs Preneet Kaur in July. Mr Browne wrote to the Indian High Commissioner twice, most recently in November 2011. This year, he raised the Government's concerns regarding the case of Balwant Singh Rajoana when he met the Indian High Commissioner on 28 March. In addition, at the UN Human Rights Council's Universal Periodic Review of India, we urged India to maintain its de facto moratorium on the death penalty.
	We have not discussed the issue of the death penalty in India with Commonwealth partners. However, we have regularly raised the issue of the death penalty in Commonwealth institutions, most recently when the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, my right hon. Friend the member for Richmond (Yorks) (Mr Hague), raised the issue at the Commonwealth People's Forum at the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting in Perth in October 2011.

India

Ian Paisley Jnr: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what steps his Department is taking to increase exports to India.

Hugo Swire: Increasing UK exports to India is a priority for both the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) and UK Trade & Industry (UKTI). Both Prime Ministers agreed in 2010 to double bilateral trade within five years. Ministers take every opportunity to engage with their Indian counterparts both in support of UK firms and to lobby on wider issues of market access. Ministers hosted senior Indian CEOs following the Global Investment Conference in London in July and both the FCO and UKTI support the UK/India CEO Forum which will report with recommendations directly to the two Prime Ministers.
	We are allocating greater resources to India, opening new missions in the most dynamic states to make the most of the opportunities on offer and, in collaboration with UKTI, providing direct assistance to companies seeking to operate there. We support the negotiation of an ambitious Free Trade Agreement between the EU and India which will further reduce barriers to trade. Bilateral investment is also strong, with India investing more in the UK than in the rest of Europe combined.

Joseph Kony

Ian Paisley Jnr: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what recent reports he has received on efforts to arrest Joseph Kony.

Mark Simmonds: A new Regional Strategy on the Lord's Resistance Army (LRA) was presented to the UN Security Council on 29 June. This strategy includes support for the implementation of an African Union Regional Task Force composed of troops from the four LRA affected countries. While we understand that there are technical challenges to implementation, Britain has urged the full deployment of troops across the region as soon as possible. The Ugandan army destroyed the base of a key general of the LRA in the Central African Republic on 24 August, and oversaw the surrender of senior commander Caesar Acellam in May 2012, demonstrating that progress is being made in reducing the capacity of the LRA and ultimately bringing Kony and other senior LRA members to justice.

Mexico

Jeremy Corbyn: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs with reference to his Department's Torture and Mistreatment Reporting Guidance, whether he has received reports on allegations of torture from his staff in Mexico.

Hugo Swire: It would not be appropriate to provide information about specific reports received from Foreign and Commonwealth Office staff under the Torture and Mistreatment Reporting Guidance.
	Human rights form an important part of our work in Mexico, and our embassy in Mexico City is paying close attention to the question of torture. Our embassy is in regular contact with a number of non-governmental organisations including Peace Brigades International, Human Rights Watch, The Mexican Commission for the Defence and Protection of Human Rights, and the Mexico City Human Rights Commission, from which it receives reports and updates on human rights cases.

Middle East

Lyn Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs whether he has had discussions with his counterparts in the Israeli government on permitting Palestinians living in Jerusalem to vote in Palestinian elections.

Alistair Burt: We welcome the news that there are to be local elections held in the West Bank on 20 October.
	This Government look to all parties to facilitate elections in the areas under their control and to help ensure a free and fair electoral process. We have not recently raised the specific issue of voting rights of Palestinians living in Jerusalem with the Government of Israel. Local Palestinian elections are not held in East Jerusalem, as they are seen as too contentious and a final status issue.

Middle East

Jonathan Reynolds: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what steps he is taking to continue the UK's support for human rights non-governmental organisations in the Middle East.

Alistair Burt: Support for human rights non-governmental organisations (NGOs) is a vital element of our effort to promote and protect universal human rights in the Middle East. We provide support through a variety of funding sources, including the Human Rights and Democracy Programme Fund, the Conflict Pool and country programmes led by the Department for International Development. Our £110 million Arab Partnership Fund, launched last year, has also increased our investment in supporting the people of the region to build more open and accountable societies, with greater respect for the rule of law and human rights.
	Examples of our support include funding for B'Tselem, an Israeli NGO that uses deterrence, accountability and public awareness to improve human rights in the West Bank and the Gaza strip. In Jordan we work with the Adaleh Center to combat torture and to improve the application of international fair trial standards. In Syria, we are providing urgent training and equipment to human rights activists, including cameras, video recorders and forensic equipment. Britain has already trained more than 60 Syrian human rights activists to collect information to support criminal investigations. We are also working with Saferworld, a UK NGO, to promote women's political participation within the broader context of promoting gender equality and women's empowerment in Egypt, Libya and Yemen.
	The UK places great value on the important role played by human rights NGOs and as well as providing support, we seek to regularly consult them. The Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs has a Human Rights Advisory Group, which includes the heads of several UK based human rights NGOs as well as human rights legal practitioners and convenes every six months.

Nepal

Esther McVey: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will consider including in his Department's online travel advice information about the number of unsolved missing tourist cases in Nepal.

Hugo Swire: On 30 July 2012 in response to my hon. Friend's letter of 9 July, we updated the Nepal travel advice webpage to include statistics on missing trekkers. The advice now reads:
	“Since 2003, four British nationals and eight other foreign nationals who had been trekking alone were reported missing”.
	Our travel advice also advises visitors to avoid trekking alone and to use a reputable local guide.

Scotland

Margaret Curran: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs on what date he last had a bilateral meeting with the Secretary of State for Scotland; and what matters were discussed.

David Lidington: The Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, my right hon. Friend the Member for Richmond (Yorks) (Mr Hague), has regular discussions with Cabinet colleagues. The content of those discussions is confidential.

South Sudan

Ian Paisley Jnr: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what recent reports he has received on progress in establishing camps in Sudan to temporarily accommodate South Sudanese people until they can migrate to South Sudan.

Alan Duncan: I have been asked to reply 
	on behalf of the Department for International Development.
	We have had no reports of the Sudanese Government establishing camps in Sudan to temporarily accommodate South Sudanese. A recent report following a comprehensive interagency assessment has recorded 40,000 South Sudanese currently living in temporary settlements in Khartoum. The majority of these people are waiting to return to South Sudan. The UK is supporting the talks in Addis Ababa and urging both governments to reach an agreement on citizenship rights.

South Sudan

Ian Paisley Jnr: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what recent reports he has received on South Sudan’s efforts to receive South Sudanese migrants from Sudan.

Alan Duncan: I have been asked to reply 
	on behalf of the Department for International Development.
	The British embassy in Juba receives regular reporting from the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA). So far, in 2012 roughly 113,000 South Sudanese have returned to South Sudan. Recent efforts to support this return include a barge movement, organised by humanitarian agencies, for around 2,700 people from Upper Nile State (where most returnees arrive in South Sudan) to Juba.

South Sudan

Ian Paisley Jnr: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what recent reports he has received on the progress of a pipeline between South Sudan and Kenya.

Mark Simmonds: A memorandum of understanding was signed between the Governments of South Sudan and Kenya on 2 March on developing a transport corridor between South Sudan and the Kenyan port of Lamu, including a possible oil pipeline. We have received no recent updates on this proposal.

South Sudan

Ian Paisley Jnr: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what recent reports he has received regarding the import of foreign weapons into South Sudan and their sources and distribution.

Mark Simmonds: The Small Arms Report provides regular public reporting on the small arms distribution in South Sudan. Their latest report is available online at:
	www.smallarmssurveysudan.org/pdfs/facts-figures/weapons-tracing-desk/HSBA-Tracing-Desk-Bentiu.pdf

South Sudan

Ian Paisley Jnr: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what reports he has received on civilian casualties in South Sudan since 2010.

Mark Simmonds: The UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs records the cumulative number of deaths reported during conflict incidents in South Sudan as 1,303 so far in 2012 and over 3,406 in 2011.

South Sudan

Ian Paisley Jnr: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what recent reports he has received on the ability of South Sudan to export oil independently of Sudan.

Mark Simmonds: Existing infrastructure means that pipelines to Port Sudan are the only current means of exporting oil from South Sudan. We welcome the provisional agreement reached between Sudan and South Sudan on 4 August on resumption of oil exports and associated financial arrangements, and encourage them to implement this as part of the settlement of all outstanding disputes between the two countries. South Sudan is also continuing to explore options for new pipelines, which would allow it to export its oil through neighbouring countries.

Sudan

Ian Paisley Jnr: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what recent reports he has received on the status of the appeals to release the lawyers, Mohammed Abdullah Al Duma, Gibril Hamid Hassabu, Rehab Assadiq Sharif and Rashida Al Ansari in Darfur.

Mark Simmonds: Sudanese security forces arrested the four lawyers, who are members of the Darfur Bar Association, on 1 July 2012. This occurred after they attended a press conference held for the human rights activist Dr. Bushra Gamar. Officials at the British embassy in Khartoum raised these cases with the Government of Sudan, in addition to the cases of other detained persons and the need to respect freedom of expression and human rights. The four lawyers were released after four days in detention.

Sudan

Ian Paisley Jnr: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what recent reports he has received on the treatment of citizens arrested during protests against the National Congress Party in Sudan.

Mark Simmonds: As was made clear by my hon. Friend the Member for North West Norfolk (Mr Bellingham), to Sudanese Foreign Minister Karti when they met on 14 July, we are particularly concerned at the continued detention of individuals involved in peaceful protest and the treatment of those detained. Although many citizens were released quickly and reportedly without ill treatment, we are deeply concerned at some reports of mental and physical ill treatment, including allegations of torture, and individuals being intimidated into handing over e-mail and social media passwords so that their activities could be monitored. We continue to encourage the Government in Sudan to release all peaceful protestors, to respect freedom of expression and to put in place a process of political reform that will address the needs and views of all its people.

Sudan

Ian Paisley Jnr: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what recent reports he has received on the treatment of Sudanese asylum seekers in Sudan.

Mark Simmonds: We do not have any specific reports on the treatment of Sudanese asylum seekers in Sudan.

Sudan

Ian Paisley Jnr: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what information his Department holds on the number of South Sudanese living in Sudan.

Alan Duncan: I have been asked to reply 
	on behalf of the Department for International Development.
	According to the Sudanese Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Humanitarian Aid Commission, there are approximately 220,000 South Sudanese remaining in Sudan. The previous figure used, based on the 2009 census, was 500,000.

Sudan

Ian Paisley Jnr: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what recent reports he has received on Sudan's support for the Lord's Resistance Army in Kenya.

Mark Simmonds: The Lord's Resistance Army (LRA) originated in Uganda but now operates in small groups in remote parts of South Sudan, Democratic Republic of Congo and the Central African Republic. We have never received reports of the LRA operating in Kenya. We have no information to suggest that Sudan is currently providing support to the LRA.

Sudan

Ian Paisley Jnr: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what recent reports he has received on the treatment of local journalists and foreign reporters in Sudan.

Mark Simmonds: As my hon. Friend the Member for North West Norfolk (Mr Bellingham), made clear in his statement of 26 June, we are concerned at growing levels of censorship and restrictions on the media in Sudan, including the banning or confiscation of editions of several newspapers and the detention of a number of journalists since protests began in June 2012. We continue to urge the Government to respect the right of the Sudanese people to freedom of expression.

Sudan

Jon Cruddas: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs whether he has made representations to the government of Sudan about (a) women's rights activist Nahid Gabralla who was arrested by the Sudanese National Intelligence Security Service on 3 July 2012 and who is being held at Omdurman Women's Prison and (b) other human rights campaigners detained in Sudanese prisons.

Mark Simmonds: We were very concerned about the case of Nahid Gabralla following her detention in Khartoum on 3 July. My hon. Friend the Member for North West Norfolk (Mr Bellingham), expressed his deep concern over Nahid's case when he met Sudanese Foreign Minister Ali Karti, in the margins of the African Union Summit on 14 July. Officials at the British embassy in Khartoum also raised their concerns over the case, and the detention of other peaceful protestors, with Presidential Assistant Abdrahman Sadiq al-Mahdi and in other contacts with Government. Nahid Gabralla has now been released, as have a number of other protestors and campaigners, but we are concerned that a number still remain in detention.

United Arab Emirates

Sadiq Khan: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what discussions his Department has held with the Government of the United Arab Emirates on the issue of UK citizens involved in financial crime since May 2010.

Alistair Burt: I am in frequent contact with my Emirati counterpart, including at the UK-United Arab Emirates (UAE) taskforce at which we regularly raise consular matters. We have also set up a Consular Cooperation Committee under that taskforce to discuss these matters at official level. At the last meeting of that Committee, in May 2012, financial crimes were discussed. Separately, we recognise that the criminalisation of debt may act as a deterrent to doing business in UAE. Our travel advice makes clear the very strict rules surrounding debt in the UAE. Embassy officials have also raised the issue with the local authorities.

United Arab Emirates

Sadiq Khan: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what reports he has received on UK citizens who have been imprisoned as a result of charges relating to bounced cheques in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) since May 2010; and whether he has made representations to the government of UAE on this matter.

Alistair Burt: I receive regular reports from our embassies in Abu Dhabi and Dubai about problems faced by UK citizens in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and UK citizens who have been imprisoned there. I meet my counterpart from the UAE regularly and discuss a wide range of issues with him, including Consular matters. As part of the UK-UAE taskforce my officials have established a Consular Co-operation Committee to discuss these matters in more detail. At the last meeting of this Committee, financial crimes were discussed. We recognise that the criminalisation of debt may act as a deterrent to doing business in the UAE, and our travel advice makes it clear that the authorities take this issue very seriously.

NORTHERN IRELAND

Correspondence

Lyn Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what the average time taken was by her Department to reply to correspondence from hon. Members and Peers in the last 12 months; and for what proportion of letters the time taken to send a response was longer than (a) one month, (b) six weeks, (c) two months, (d) three months and (e) six months in that period.

Theresa Villiers: The Cabinet Office, on an annual basis, publishes a report to Parliament on the performance of Departments in replying to Members' and Peers' correspondence. The report for 2011 was published on 15 March 2012, Official Report, columns 31-33WS.

Parades

Jim Shannon: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland if she will establish an immediate inquiry into the decisions made by the Parades Commission in respect of parades in Northern Ireland on 12 July 2012 and the violence ensuing from such parades.

Theresa Villiers: I have no plans to establish an inquiry into the Northern Ireland Parades Commission's decisions. The Parades Commission is the legally constituted body for determining parades in Northern Ireland and anyone breaching its determinations can expect to face the full force of the law.

WORK AND PENSIONS

Members: Correspondence

David Winnick: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions if he will ensure the letter dated 28 August 2012 concerning a late constituent from the hon. Member for Walsall North is read by him and that the reply will also come from himself.

Mark Hoban: I can confirm that the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, my right hon. Friend the Member for Chingford and Woodford Green (Mr Duncan Smith), will reply in person.

Pensions

Philip Hollobone: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what recent estimate he has made of the number of people in work not saving for a pension in (a) Northamptonshire and (b) England.

Steve Webb: The information is not available in the format requested.
	What is available can be found in Table 8.4 of the 2010/11 Family Resources Survey at the following address.
	http://research.dwp.gov.uk/asd/frs/2010_11/frs_2010_11_report.pdf
	This shows that for England in 2010/11 half of employees (50 per cent) were not saving in a pension scheme. The corresponding figure for the East Midlands was 54 per cent.

Universal Credit

Mike Weatherley: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what circumstances will trigger the automatic payment of the housing element of universal credit direct to a private sector landlord instead of to a tenant.

Steve Webb: As part of the transition to Universal Credit, claimants will receive the single monthly payment which will contain an element payable for rent.
	We recognise that some claimants may need additional help to budget, particularly during the transitional period. As a first step, claimants will be offered budgeting support products and services. Where it is evident that a claimant cannot manage a single monthly payment effectively an alternative payment arrangement will be considered. This could include the payment of housing costs direct to the landlord.
	The Direct Payment Demonstration projects have been set up to help inform the development of the criteria for determining when it would be appropriate to make a payment direct to a landlord therefore the detailed process is still being developed.

WALES

Correspondence

Lyn Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what the average time taken by his Department was to reply to correspondence from hon. Members and Peers in the last 12 months; and for what proportion of letters the time taken to send a response was longer than (a) one month, (b) six weeks, (c) two months, (d) three months and (e) six months in that period.

David Jones: From 1 September 2011 to 1 September 2012, the Wales Office received 62 letters from MPs and Peers and the average time taken to reply was 13 days:
	(a) longer than one month: 0%
	(b) six weeks : 1.61 % (i.e. one letter)
	(c) two months: 0%
	(d) three months: 0%
	(e) six months: 0%.
	The Cabinet Office, on an annual basis, publishes a report to Parliament on the performance of Departments in replying to Members' and Peers' correspondence. The report for 2011 was published on 15 March 2012, Official Report, columns 31-33WS.

INTERNATIONAL DEVELOPMENT

Acid Attacks

Paul Blomfield: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development whether she has had recent discussions with her international counterparts on the monitoring and prevention of acid attacks.

Alan Duncan: On a visit to Pakistan in March 2012, the Secretary of State publically reiterated the UK Government's commitment to ending acid violence and to working to empower and protect women and girls in Pakistan and other countries where this kind of violence exists.
	DFID currently funds Acid Survivors Trust International (ASTI), a UK-based specialist international non-governmental organisation that has been tackling acid violence in Bangladesh, Pakistan, Uganda, Nepal and Cambodia for almost 10 years. This funding includes support for monitoring and prevention of acid attacks. The former Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, my hon. Friend the Member for Eddisbury (Mr O'Brien) and I, both underlined UK support for ASTI's work when we visited Acid Survivors Foundation Bangladesh in 2011.

Burma

Sadiq Khan: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what steps her Department plans to take to ensure that humanitarian assistance is provided to refugees and internally displaced peoples along the Bangladesh-Burma border.

Alan Duncan: The UK Government has repeatedly called for the Government of Burma to allow unhindered humanitarian access to all of the areas affected. Humanitarian agencies, including those receiving core funding from the United Kingdom, are now able to provide aid to some of the affected areas, in line with the humanitarian principles of humanity, impartiality, neutrality and independence - but this falls short of what is needed. In August the then Secretary of State for International Development, my right hon. Friend the Member for Sutton Coldfield (Mr Mitchell) met with the Prime Minister of Bangladesh and raised directly with her our concerns about the level of access being allowed to humanitarian non-governmental organisations supporting Rohingya refugees in Bangladesh. We continue to monitor the situation and humanitarian response on both sides of the border closely.

Democratic Republic of the Congo

Tom Blenkinsop: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what support her Department is providing to refugees internally displaced in the Democratic Republic of the Congo.

Alan Duncan: Conflict in eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) has displaced approximately 500,000 people since the start of the year. 2012 has seen a significant deterioration in DRC’s humanitarian situation, with large numbers of people forced to flee their homes and livelihoods, brutal attacks on civilians by a number of armed groups, and serious cholera and measles epidemics among displaced populations.
	The UK has been providing significant support to those who have had to leave their homes as a result of violence, ensuring that displaced people have access to safe water, shelter, healthcare and protection from further attacks. Our support reaches 2.1 million people in DRC each year with emergency assistance. The UK is the largest donor to the Rapid Response to the Movement of Populations mechanism which—by the end of July—had reached more than 368,000 newly displaced people with emergency assistance.
	We remain extremely concerned by the situation facing the population of eastern Congo, and are working closely with the United Nations and non-governmental organisations to ensure vulnerable people are reached quickly and effectively with essential lifesaving assistance.

Overseas Aid

Stephen Barclay: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development how many of her Department's funded projects started in the last five years have subsequently been cancelled before completion.

Alan Duncan: Information about projects which have been cancelled before completion is available for individual projects. However, this information is not recorded in the Department's management information system and could only be collected at disproportionate cost. I have asked officials to advise how this might be done in future.

Overseas Aid

Stephen Barclay: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development how many of her Department's funded projects started in the last five years (a) have been delivered later than originally scheduled and (b) are estimated to be delivered later than originally scheduled.

Alan Duncan: Information on projects delivered, or estimated to be delivered, later than originally scheduled is available for individual projects. However, this information is not recorded in the Department's management information system and could only be collected at disproportionate cost. I have asked officials to advise how this might be done in future.

Remittances

John Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development if she will estimate the average cost of using a money transfer company to send a remittance payment.

Alan Duncan: The Department for International Development relies on the World Bank for data on international remittance costs. The World Bank coordinates international action to meet the commitment made by G8 countries in 2009 to reduce the average cost of sending and receiving remittances by 5 percentage points to 5.0% by 2014. International remittance costs are monitored by the World Bank through the Remittance Prices Worldwide database http://remittanceprices.worldbank.org/.
	The database is updated every six months. Latest available data for the period January-March 2012 showed that the average total cost of sending remittances from the UK was 7.93%, compared to a global average of 9.12%.

Remittances

John Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what estimate she has made of how much money was sent abroad in remittance payments in each month in (a) 2011 and (b) the first half of 2012.

Alan Duncan: The Department for International Development relies on the Office for National Statistics (ONS) for data on UK transfers. The ONS does not publish separate estimates for remittances as they are not considered to be of sufficient quality. Instead, estimates for remittances are combined with estimates for net transfers from UK charities, defined in the UK Balance of Payments (the Pink Book) as ‘other payments by households’.
	Data for ‘other payments by households’ are only available on an annual basis. The 2012 Edition of the Pink Book published in July estimated ‘other payments by households’ at £5.74 billion in 2011:
	http://www.ons.gov.uk/ons/rel/bop/united-kingdom-balance-of-payments/2012/index.html

CULTURE MEDIA AND SPORT

Broadband

Jack Lopresti: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Olympics, Media and Sport what assessment she has made of the potential role of 4G/LTE mobile broadband in assisting the UK to meet EU broadband 2020 targets.

Edward Vaizey: It is the view of the Department for Culture, Media and Sport that 4G mobile technologies will play a role in delivering broadband coverage beyond the edge of the fixed infrastructure. It is one of a suite of technologies that will be required to deliver broadband, as it is not feasible to provide fixed internet connections at broadband speeds in all cases to every household.

Broadband: Hartlepool

Iain Wright: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Olympics, Media and Sport if she will bring forward proposals to improve broadband (a) connectivity and (b) speed for Elwick village in Hartlepool constituency; and if she will make a statement.

Edward Vaizey: The Government has made available £530 million in the current spending round to stimulate private investment in superfast broadband in locations where the commercial investment case is weak. Hartlepool is covered by the Durham local broadband plan. The plan has been approved by the Secretary of State for Culture, Olympics Media and Sport, and the project has been allocated £9.88 million. Durham county council is the lead authority and is currently preparing to run a procurement exercise to appoint a supplier to upgrade the communications infrastructure in areas eligible for public support. The hon. Member may, therefore, wish to contact the county council about the coverage areas included in its local broadband plan.

Broadband: Rural Areas

Daniel Poulter: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Olympics, Media and Sport what steps she plans to take to ensure high-speed broadband coverage is extended to rural areas after local call-off contracts are awarded to suppliers as part of the BDUK Broadband Procurement Framework agreements.

Edward Vaizey: The call-off contracts awarded by local authorities under the BDUK Broadband Framework will be focused on delivery of superfast broadband to areas where public intervention is required to stimulate further private investment; these are predominately rural locations.

Correspondence

Lyn Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Olympics, Media and Sport what the average time taken was by her Department to reply to correspondence from hon. Members and Peers in the last 12 months; and for what proportion of letters the time taken to send a response was longer than (a) one month, (b) six weeks, (c) two months, (d) three months and (e) six months in that period.

Hugh Robertson: In the last 12 months, the Department has responded to correspondence from hon. Members and Peers in the following departmental timescales:
	18% in 48 hours, and,
	64% in 10 working days.
	Due to the way in which we record correspondence we are unable to provide the remaining figures in the exact format you have requested; however, we can advise that (a) 10% of the letters received were sent out in over 20 working days, (b) 4% in over 30 working days, (c) 2% in over 40 working days, (d) 1% in over 50 working days and (e) no letters took over 100 working days to respond to.
	The Cabinet Office, on an annual basis, publishes a report to Parliament on the performance of Departments in replying to Members' and Peers' correspondence. The report for 2011 was published on 15 March 2012, Official Report, columns 31-33WS.

Digital Broadcasting: Radio

Gordon Henderson: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Olympics, Media and Sport what steps she is taking to improve coverage of digital radio in (a) England, (b) the South East and (c) Sittingbourne and Sheppey constituency.

Edward Vaizey: Ofcom are leading a review of future DAB coverage, as part of the joint Government industry Digital Radio Action Plan. Earlier this year, Ofcom published a consultation setting out the parameters for future DAB coverage planning and how infrastructure needs to change to match current FM level. The consultation can be found at:
	http://stakeholders.ofcom.org.uk/broadcasting/radio/coverage/dab-coverage/?utm_source=updates8tutm_medium =email&utm_campaign=dab-coverage-report
	In June 2012 Government, multiplex operators and the BBC signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) on local DAB funding for radio switchover. The MOU set out the process for up to £21 million of investment in local DAB infrastructure over the next five years. In addition, the MOU will facilitate the launching of five new local multiplexes, including across North East Wales.

Gambling

Gareth Johnson: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Olympics, Media and Sport whether she intends to accept the recommendations of the Culture, Media and Sport Committee in its Report on The Gambling Act 2005: A bet worth taking? (First Report of Session 2012-13, HC 421), that legislation on gambling should be liberalised and that decisions on gambling establishments be devolved to local authorities.

Hugh Robertson: The Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) is grateful to the Committee for the report. DCMS is currently considering its recommendations and will respond in due course.

Licensing

Richard Fuller: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Olympics, Media and Sport what permits and licences her Department and its public bodies issue to businesses.

Hugh Robertson: The Department for Culture, Media and Sport does not directly issue any permits or licences to businesses. When a licence or permit is required in relation to an area of the Department's policy then this would be the responsibility of its arm’s length bodies. Accordingly, as this information is not held centrally, I have asked the chief executive of the Department's arm's length bodies to write directly to the hon. Member with this information.
	A copy of the letter will be placed in the Libraries of both Houses.

London Airports

Laurence Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Olympics, Media and Sport what recent estimate she has made of the percentage of passengers arriving at (a) Heathrow and (b) Gatwick airport who go on to visit parts of mainland UK other than Greater London; and if she will make a statement.

Hugh Robertson: The Department has made no recent estimate. Data relating to travel behaviour of inbound visitors are collated by the Office for National Statistics, via the International Passenger Survey (IPS). The IPS records how many overseas visitors went to different parts of the UK during their visit, at the following link; however this information is not airport specific:
	http://www.visitbritain.org/insightsandstatistics/inboundvisitorstatistics/regions/index.aspx
	In 2011, the IPS estimates that 50.4% of total visits to the UK took place outside of London.

Olympic Games 2012: Ministers

David Blunkett: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Olympics, Media and Sport how many tickets were made available for use or allocation by the Prime Minister and Deputy Prime Minister for the opening ceremonies of the London 2012 Olympics and Paralympics; and if she will make a statement.

Hugh Robertson: In the autumn, the Government will publish a full list of whom it allocated Olympic and Paralympic tickets to, the cost to Government of those tickets and reasons for allocation. This will include recipients of tickets to all ceremonies.

One North West

Philip Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Olympics, Media and Sport what funding (a) her Department and (b) its agencies have given to One North West.

Hugh Robertson: One North West has not received any funding from the Department for Culture, Media and Sport or its agency The Royal Parks.

Public Sector: Telephone Services

Stephen McPartland: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Olympics, Media and Sport if she will discuss with Ofcom steps to protect low income consumers from high charges for calls to public sector helplines using 08 telephone numbers.

Edward Vaizey: This is an operational issue for the independent regulator, the Office of Communications (Ofcom).
	Ofcom's General Condition 14 requires communications providers to adopt Codes of Practice relating to their domestic and small business customers in relation to (i) information about pricing and services and (ii) display of prices for non-geographic and premium rate numbers.
	In terms of 0800 numbers, Ofcom's numbering plan requires that communications providers route calls to a pre-call announcement stating that the call is chargeable.
	In 2007, 03 numbers were introduced as a lower cost alternative to chargeable 08 numbers like 0870. Calls to 03 numbers cost the same as calls to geographic numbers (starting 01 or 02), and are included as part of any inclusive call minutes or discount schemes in the same way as geographic calls. Revenue sharing—where the dialled party can receive a share of what the consumer pays to make a call—is not permitted on calls to 03 numbers.

Radio Frequencies

Jack Lopresti: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Olympics, Media and Sport when Ofcom intends to announce its decision on the liberalisation of the 1800 MHz band.

Edward Vaizey: On 21 August 2012 Ofcom announced that it had approved an application by the mobile phone operator Everything Everywhere (EE) to use its existing 1800 MHz spectrum to deliver 4G services (LTE and WiMAX). In parallel with this decision, Ofcom issued varied licences to EE which authorise 4G services from 11 September 2012. This means that EE can launch 4G services using its 1800 MHz spectrum at any point from that date, although the precise timing of any launch is a commercial decision for Everything Everywhere.

Radio Frequencies

Jack Lopresti: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Olympics, Media and Sport when she proposes that spectrum currently used for 2G and 3G services will be made available for 4G.

Edward Vaizey: The European Commission's Radio Spectrum Committee Decision 2009/766/EC, as amended by Decision 2011/251/EC, requires all EU member states to designate and make available the 900 MHz and 1800 MHz spectrum bands for 4G services by 31 December 2011. Since there is no legal impediment to either the 900 MHz or 1800 MHz bands being authorised for 4G services, this requirement has been met by the UK.
	The UK is also required, under European Commission Decision 243/2012/EU, subject to market demand, to complete an authorisation process to liberalise the 900 MHz and 1800 MHz spectrum bands for LTE and WiMAX use by the end of this year.
	To date only Everything Everywhere has sought a variation to its licence to allow it to deploy 4G services in this spectrum. This application was granted by Ofcom on 21 August 2012. Should Ofcom receive variation requests for the remaining licences in the 1800 MHz and 900 MHz bands, demonstrating market demand for such variations, Ofcom will consult on variation of those licences as required by the relevant legislation.

Telephone Services: Fees and Charges

Julian Huppert: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Olympics, Media and Sport what steps she is taking to ensure that (a) service charges and (b) access charges for non-geographic telephone numbers are advertised to consumers by telecommunications operators.

Edward Vaizey: This is an operational issue for the independent regulator, the Office of Communications (Ofcom). Currently, under General Condition 14, Ofcom requires communications providers to publish transparent pricing information for non-geographic calls, including in their advertising and promotional material. Providers must also ensure that those charges are given the same prominence as other call charge information.
	However, Ofcom recognises that the current system around non-geographic numbers does not work for consumers, with confusion around call pricing and concerns about revenue sharing. Therefore it is proposing to simplify the number ranges. The main proposals are:
	Freephone: (080 and 116 numbers) to be free from all telephones, landline and mobile;
	Revenue sharing ranges: (084, 087, 09 and 118 numbers—where a portion of the retail charge is passed back to the receiver of the call) are to have a common simplified structure.
	Under the new proposals, calls subject to revenue sharing will be “unbundled” so that consumers will know exactly how much is paid to their phone provider (the access charge) and how much is passed on to other companies (the service charge).
	Given the complexity of the changes there will need to be at least 18 months, transition time, which will start when the proposals are finalised by the end of this year.

War Memorials

Karen Lumley: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Olympics, Media and Sport what funding her Department has allocated to the maintenance of war memorials in each of the next three years; and what steps it has taken to ensure that war memorials are maintained to a high standard.

Edward Vaizey: The Department for Culture, Media and Sport provides funding to ensure war memorials are maintained and conserved to a high standard through the Department's own Memorial Grant Scheme and schemes provided by its sponsored bodies including English Heritage, the Heritage Lottery Fund and the Imperial War Museum.
	The DCMS Memorial Grant Scheme makes grants towards the VAT incurred by charities and faith groups in the construction, repair and maintenance of public memorial structures, including war memorials. The funding allocated to this scheme is:
	
		
			 Financial year £ 
			 2012-13 516,000 
			 2013-14 530, 000 
			 2014-15 549, 000 
		
	
	English Heritage expects to allocate £100,000 per year for the next three years for the repair of freestanding war memorials and also anticipates providing funding to War Memorials Trust over the same period to support its ongoing conservation programme, which provides advice on maintenance and care to owners and custodians of war memorials.
	English Heritage is also working in partnership with local authorities, the police, the Crown Prosecution Service and local groups on the Heritage Crime Programme, which aims to protect vulnerable buildings and sites, including war memorials. It has also worked jointly with the War Memorial Trust and other partners to publish free guidance leaflets to promote a high standard of maintenance of war memorials.
	The Heritage Lottery Fund has launched a new initiative to encourage applications to the DCMS Memorial Grant Scheme for projects related to the centenaries of the first world war. It has also convened a War Memorials Action Group to review the issues around the protection and restoration of war memorials.

HOME DEPARTMENT

Asylum: Democratic Republic of the Congo

Tom Blenkinsop: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what discussions she has had with the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs on the monitoring of the human rights of failed asylum seekers returned to the Democratic Republic of the Congo.

Mark Harper: Home Office Ministers have regular meetings with ministerial colleagues and others as part of the process of policy development and delivery. As was the case with previous Administrations, it is not the Government's practice to provide details of all such meetings.
	The UK Border Agency and the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) do not routinely monitor the treatment of individual failed asylum seekers in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) once they are returned from the UK. However, the FCO follows the human rights situation in the DRC and informs UK Border Agency officials of any concerns about the human rights of returnees.

Asylum: Deportation

Keith Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many flights deporting failed asylum seekers had (a) more staff than deportees, (b) twice as many staff as deportees, (c) three times as many staff as deportees and (d) more than three times as many staff as deportees on board in each year since 2008.

Mark Harper: The UK Border Agency's charter flights carry those individuals who have no lawful basis of stay in the United Kingdom. This includes, but is not limited to, failed asylum applicants.
	The following table shows how many flights had (a) more staff than returnees, (b) between twice and three times as many staff as returnees and (c) more than three times as many staff as returnees for 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011 and 2012 (to date). Staff referred to are those employed by both the UK Border Agency and its external contractors.
	It is rare for charter flights to see an exact ratio of twice or three times as many staff as returnees and, as such, the reply is structured to allow for the data to be viewed more clearly.
	
		
			  2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 
			 More staff than returnees 41 23 14 15 7 
			 Between twice and three times as many staff as returnees 24 40 43 22 15 
			 More than three times as many staff as returnees 0 4 1 2 4 
		
	
	Each charter returnee is individually risk assessed to determine how many personnel are required and these risk assessments are based on a returnee's medical and behavioural history. As such the number of personnel required for each returnee can vary and this is reflected in the data provided.
	Please note that all figures quoted are not provided under National Statistics protocols and have been derived from local management information. They are therefore provisional and subject to change.

Borders: Personal Records

Philip Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what recent progress her Department has made on its e-Borders programme.

Mark Harper: The Border Technology Programme brings together e-Borders, Border Systems Procurement and Border Automation. The programme is currently tracking around 55% of inbound and 60% of outbound passenger and crew movements; this equates to approximately 129 million passenger movements a year on over 3,400 routes. The UK Border Agency met the public commitment of receiving data for 100% of aviation routes starting outside the EEA for passengers and crew by April 2012. The UK Border Agency is extending collection of advance passenger information (API) data to maritime and rail routes as part of its efforts to maximise data collection and new capability has been added to the system that will enable the processing of API received from all types of transport.
	Border Systems Procurement was set up in September 2011 in order to undertake the necessary procurement(s) for a new service provider for the support and maintenance of the existing Semaphore and Warnings Index applications. The Border Automation work is to develop the strategy and high level business and technical requirements for automated Border Solutions including e-Gates, targeting systems and detection. Border Technology provides critical capability to a range of stakeholders including the Home Office, the UK Border Agency, the police and other agencies.

Entry Clearances: China

Frank Field: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if she will place in the Library a list of the main threats to UK security her Department sees would arise if it were to change its policy on issuing tourist visas to Chinese nationals.

Mark Harper: The UK will shortly review the visitor visa regime. We will inform countries on a confidential bilateral basis of our concerns where appropriate.

Entry Clearances: Overseas Students

Keith Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what the name is of each UK university which has had its highly trusted sponsor status revoked since May 2010.

Mark Harper: Since May 2010, London Metropolitan University is the only university that has had its Tier 4 sponsor licence revoked.

Immigrants: Tuberculosis

Virendra Sharma: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what information on migrants from high tuberculosis (TB) burden countries that have had pre-entry screening for active TB and who have arrived in the UK is exchanged between her Department and the Department of Health to assist with latent TB screening.

Mark Harper: The UK Border Agency and Health Protection Agency (HPA) are in the process of replacing the existing on-entry tuberculosis (TB) screening arrangements for arriving passengers with a new system of pre-migration screening for long term visa applicants in high incidence countries, and, as part of this work, are developing plans to expand information sharing to assist with latent TB screening in the community. This will include data on persons subject to pre-migration screening. The HPA and other health bodies already collect the name and address of migrants arriving at major UK airports from high incidence TB countries intending to stay for over six months to assist local healthcare teams to connect with new migrants. The National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence recommends that healthcare providers use there data in considering whether to screen for latent TB. Those screened abroad are issued a certificate that advises the migrant to carry their x-rays and medical records from such screening and to pass these on to their GP in the UK.

Immigration

Charlotte Leslie: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many immigrants applying for indefinite leave to remain in the UK have (a) been removed, (b) cases pending and (c) been allowed to remain in the UK following evidence that they have lied or used forged documents in their applications in the last 10 years.

Mark Harper: The data requested are not held in a format compatible with National Statistics protocols, or produced as part of the UK Border Agency's standard reports.
	The Home Office publishes immigration statistics annually and quarterly, which are available from the Home Office Research and Statistics website. This includes information on applications for further leave to remain as well as removals data. The latest statistics can be found in the Library of the House as well as on the following website:
	http://www.homeoffice.gov.uk/publications/science-research-statistics/research-statistics/immigration-asylum-research/immigration-q2-2012/

Immigration Controls: Armed Forces

Madeleine Moon: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what steps her Department is taking to enable foreign-born armed forces service personnel who wish to remain in the UK following discharge from the armed forces to apply for (a) leave to remain, (b) acquisition of settlement and (c) citizenship; and if she will make a statement.

Mark Harper: All foreign and Commonwealth personnel who leave HM forces are given 28 days leave to remain in the UK to allow them to arrange for their departure from the UK, or to apply for leave to remain under the immigration rules.
	Foreign and Commonwealth personnel who have served a minimum of four years in HM Forces and who have been, or are being, discharged are able to apply for and acquire settlement in the UK.
	Commonwealth personnel who have already acquired settlement under the immigration rules, or those who have served in HM forces for a minimum of five years, are able to apply for naturalisation as a British citizen.
	I do not propose to make a written or oral statement to the House on these matters.

Members: Correspondence

Gerald Kaufman: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department when she intends to answer the letter concerning Ms A A sent to her by the right hon. Member for Manchester, Gorton on 31 July 2012.

Mark Harper: The former Minister for Immigration, my hon. Friend the Member for Ashford (Damian Green) wrote to the right hon. Member on 4 September 2012.

Members: Correspondence

Gerald Kaufman: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department when she intends to answer the letter concerning Miss T M Pinnock sent to her by the right hon. Member for Manchester, Gorton on 31 July 2012.

Mark Harper: The former Minister for Immigration, my hon. Friend the Member for Ashford (Damian Green), wrote to the right hon. Member on 29 August 2012.

Members: Correspondence

Gerald Kaufman: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department when she intends to answer the letter concerning Ms N A sent to her by the right hon. Member for Manchester, Gorton on 31 July 2012.

Mark Harper: The former Minister for Immigration, my hon. Friend the Member for Ashford (Damian Green) wrote to the right hon. Member on 30 August 2012.

Passports

Simon Hughes: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what progress the Identity and Passport Service has made in reviewing gender markers in passports; and when she plans to publish the outcome of this review.

Mark Harper: “Advancing transgender equality: a plan for action” published by the Home Office in December 2011, indicated that a review would be undertaken on how gender identification is represented in passport application forms and passports.
	The review is being carried out by the Identity and Passport Service and will meet the timeline, set out in the action plan, to report by the end of February 2013. The outcome of the review will form part of the Government's response in reporting progress on the transgender equality plan.

Passports

Alison Seabeck: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what the average time taken was for a UK passport to be issued (a) on the most recent date for which figures are available and (b) in September 2011.

Mark Harper: The Identity and Passport Service (IPS) provides three levels of service to the public.
	The Counter service provides guaranteed time bound services for Premium (four hour service) and Fast Track (one week, five working day service). Transaction times are not recorded for these services but the IPS records performance of each counter service.
	
		
			 Percentage 
			 Counter services August 2012 September 2011 
			 Premium (4 hour service) 99.6 99.9 
			 Fast Track (5 day service) 100.0 98.7 
		
	
	The majority of IPS customers use the Postal Service. IPS records the time taken as the number of days taken between the receipt of application to the time of despatch to the applicant. Guidance to customers is that those using this service will normally receive their passport within three weeks, although it can take longer during peak periods and up to six weeks for first time applications.
	
		
			  August 2012 September 2011 
			 Postal service (average turnaround in days) 11.6 5.6 
		
	
	It should be noted that the transition from high to low season in passport demand takes place during August and September. These average transaction times do not include the delivery period after the passport is printed—this is normally within 48 hours.

Passports: Concessions

Andrew Stephenson: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many free passports were issued in each of the last three years; and whether she has any plans to extend the scheme's eligibility criteria.

Mark Harper: Concessionary passports were introduced in May 2004 as part of the 60(th) anniversary commemorative events for the second world war to recognise those people who had contributed to the war effort, both civilian and military. The scheme allows any adult born on or before 2 September 1929 to obtain a British passport free of charge. The number of passports issued in each of the last three years is:
	
		
			  Number 
			 2009-10 71,311 
			 2010-11 62,926 
			 2011-12 46,484 
		
	
	There are no plans to extend the scheme's eligibility criteria.

Riot Control Weapons

Jeremy Corbyn: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many water cannons are available to English and Welsh police forces; and what advice her Department has issued to police forces on their use.

Damian Green: Water cannon are not authorised for use by the police in England and Wales. If an operational requirement arose, the water cannon currently in use in Northern Ireland could be deployed in England and Wales, but the force would need to seek approval from the Home Secretary first.

Road Traffic Control

Julian Huppert: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many (a) traffic wardens, (b) police officers, (c) police community support officers and (d) civilian police staff performed traffic policing as their main function in England and Wales in each of the last 10 years.

Damian Green: Information for the last ten years on the number of traffic wardens, police officers, police community support officers and civilian staff (including s.38 designated officers) within the traffic and traffic wardens policing functions in England and Wales are shown in the following table.
	
		
			 Number of traffic wardens, police officers, police community support officers and civilian police staff within the traffic and the traffic warden policing functions in England and Wales, 2002-03 to 2011-12(1, 2) 
			  Traffic(3) Traffic Wardens(4) 
			  Traffic Wardens(5) Police Officers Police Community Support Officers Civilian Police Staff(6) Traffic Wardens(5) Police Officers Police Community Support Officers Civilian Police Staff(6) 
			 2002-03 0 6,902 0 549 2,002 1 0 66 
			 2003-04 7 6,702 0 686 1,626 1 0 14 
			 2004-05 6 6,943 426 776 1,184 0 1 93 
			 2005-06 16 6,592 0 862 1,014 2 76 22 
			 2006-07 12 6,412 21 854 703 2 105 26 
			 2007-08 1 6,299 20 953 572 6 139 20 
			 2008-09 0 5,714 20 950 456 1 141 11 
			 2009-10 0 5,634 24 1,029 399 1 19 8 
			 2010-11 0 5,316 18 898 246 1 0 7 
			 2011-12 1 4,868 63 823 35 4 0 59 
			 (1) Staff with multiple responsibilities (or designations) are recorded under their primary role or function. The deployment of police officers is an operational matter for individual Chief Constables. (2) This table contains full-time equivalent figures that have been rounded to the nearest whole number. (3) Traffic function includes staff who are predominantly employed on motor-cycles or in patrol vehicles for the policing of traffic and motorway related duties. This includes officers employed in accident investigation, vehicle examination and radar duties. Also includes staff who are predominantly employed to support the traffic function of the force including radar, accident investigation, vehicle examination and traffic administration. Includes those officers working with hazardous chemicals, and those administrative staff predominantly serving the internal needs of the traffic function of the force and those officers / staff in supporting roles. (4) Traffic wardens function includes traffic wardens engaged in patrol and other duties. Includes senior traffic wardens who are predominantly employed in the supervision of traffic wardens, otherwise than on patrol. Includes those officers / staff in supporting roles. (5) The decline of police employed traffic wardens over this period reflects the increasing role of local authorities in parking control. (6) Civilian police staff includes s.38 designated officers.

Schengen Agreement

Frank Field: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if she will consider opting in to the Schengen Agreement in respect of European tourist visas; and if she will consider requesting the power to make individual refusals on a case by case basis where she believes UK security might be threatened.

Mark Harper: We have no plans to opt in to the Schengen acquis in respect of European tourist visas. The Immigration Rules provide the Secretary of State with a wide range of powers to refuse visas to individuals who pose a threat to UK security.

UK Border Agency

Lisa Nandy: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many cases are currently designated by the UK Border Agency as lay-by, by section.

Mark Harper: The information is not held centrally and could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.

UK Border Agency

Lisa Nandy: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many cases have been designated as lay-by by the UK Border Agency in each of the last five years.

Mark Harper: The information is not held centrally and could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.

UK Border Agency

Lisa Nandy: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many cases designated as lay-by by the UK Border Agency are currently awaiting removal.

Mark Harper: The information is not held centrally and could only be obtained at disproportionate cost.

UK Border Agency

Keith Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department on how many occasions the Border Agency caseworkers overruled the advice of a medical practitioner on whether or not an individual detainee was mentally fit to remain in immigration detention between 1 January 2010 and 30 June 2012; and how many individual detainees were affected by such decisions.

Mark Harper: The information requested is not recorded centrally and could only be provided by examination of individual records at disproportionate cost.
	UK Border Agency case owners must take a number of factors into consideration, including any reported or observed mental health issues, in order to reach a decision on whether detention or continuing detention is appropriate.

UK Border Agency

Keith Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department with reference to the witness statement by the Director of the UK Border Agency's Returns Directorate of 12 March 2012, what progress was made on completing the Equality Impact Assessment of policy on the detention of mentally ill individuals for immigration purposes between 12 and 19 March 2012.

Mark Harper: The commitment to carry out the Equality Impact Assessment was given in the course of legal proceedings. In light of the findings in those legal proceedings, and having taken further legal advice, we are now challenging the Court's judgement and reconsidering our position in relation to the Equality Impact Assessment.

UK Border Force

Keith Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department on how many occasions and at what cost the Border Force drafted in staff posted overseas to work in the UK on a temporary basis between 1 January 2010 and 30 June 2012; and how many individuals working for the Border Force overseas were drafted in to work in the UK on a temporary basis in that period.

Mark Harper: On no occasions between 1 January 2010 and 30 June 2012 did the Border Force draft in any staff posted overseas to work in the UK on a temporary basis.

BUSINESS, INNOVATION AND SKILLS

Aerospace Industry

Iain Wright: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what plans he has to (a) maintain and (b) enhance the competitiveness of the UK aerospace industry; and if he will make a statement.

Michael Fallon: The Government is working in close partnership with the UK aerospace sector through the Aerospace Growth Partnership (AGP) to tackle barriers to growth, boost exports and grow the number of high value jobs in the UK. Industry has provided eight full-time secondees to support the process and over 70 senior executives from a range of companies are engaged in the activity. The AGP is led by a group that I co-chair with Marcus Bryson (CEO, GKN Aerospace). In addition, the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, the right hon. Member for Twickenham (Vince Cable), chairs the Aerospace Business Leaders group, which meets to discuss strategic issues facing the sector.
	Specific next steps were set out in ‘A Strategic Vision for UK Aerospace’, which was jointly launched by Government and industry at the Farnborough Airshow in July. Details are available at:
	http://www.adsgroup.org.uk/pages/40227907.asp
	We are working with companies across the sector to publish a full strategy—through the AGP—at the end of this year.

Apprentices

Claire Perry: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills if he will estimate the cost to the public purse of increasing the proportion of apprenticeships for 16 to 17-year-olds by 11 per cent in each year between 2012-13 and 2016-17.

Matthew Hancock: I refer my hon. Friend to the answer given by the then Minister of State for Skills and Lifelong Learning, my hon. Friend the Member for South Holland and The Deepings (Mr Hayes), to my hon. Friend the Member for East Surrey (Mr Gyimah) on 3 September 2012, Official Report, column 267W.

Apprentices

Robert Halfon: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills how many apprentices were employed by (a) his Department and (b) its principal contractors in each of the last five years.

Matthew Hancock: The Department for Business, Innovation and Skills has had the following numbers of apprenticeship starts:
	2007/08: No data available
	2008/09: 22
	2009/10: 34
	2010/11: 28
	2011/12: 16
	2012/13: 20 (anticipated)
	The Department for Business, Innovation and Skills has a large network of partner organisations of different types: executive, advisory and tribunal non-departmental public bodies (NDPBs), agencies, public corporations, and non-ministerial departments, many of whom employ apprentices themselves. Some 80% of the Department's resources pass through these organisations, so they are vital to delivering our objectives.
	The Department does not hold information on the number of apprenticeships created directly through principal contractors.

Business: West Midlands

Stephen McCabe: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what steps his Department has taken to increase the level of access to credit for small businesses in (a) Birmingham and (b) the West Midlands in the last two years.

Michael Fallon: The Government has made it clear that ensuring the flow of credit to small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs) is essential for support to growth and is a core objective.
	To support more lending, the Bank of England and HM Treasury launched the Funding for Lending Scheme (FLS) on 13 July. It gives banks strong incentives to boost lending, by lowering interest rates and increasing the availability of business loans and mortgages. It allows banks and building societies to borrow from the Bank of England for up to 4 years; as security against that lending, banks will provide assets, such as business or mortgage loans, to the Bank of England. This will benefit businesses across the country.
	The Government also continues to support lending to businesses through the Enterprise Finance Guarantee Scheme. In the last two years, the number and value of Enterprise Finance Guarantee (EFG) loans to businesses in (a) the six Birmingham constituencies and Sutton Coldfield is 94 with a value of £10.94 million and (b) the West Midlands is 574, with a value of £61.4million.
	Several programmes under the £2.4 billion Regional Growth Fund (RGF) also support SMEs access finance. A number of these are national in scope, such as the schemes run by HSBC (£25M RGF), Santander (£50M RGF) and RBS (£70M RGF), but there are also schemes focused specifically on the West Midlands run by Bourneville College (£5M RGF) and Herefordshire Council (£1.5M), details of which can be found at:
	http://www.bournville.ac.uk/tag/regional-growth-fund/
	and via:
	http://www.herefordshire.gov.uk/.

Chartered Institute of Management Accountants

Charlotte Leslie: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what measures are in place to ensure that recognised qualifications provided by the Chartered Institute of Management Accountants are subject to independent quality control.

Matthew Hancock: The Chartered Institute of Management Accountants regulates the qualifications it offers in accordance with the terms of its Royal Charter. It is also a voluntary member of the International Federation of Accountants, which sets standards to which its members must adhere.
	Accountancy, outside of certain reserved areas such as company audit and insolvency work, is not subject to statutory regulation, and there are no statutory requirements for independent quality control of the work of those holding qualifications offered by the Chartered Institute of Management Accountants.

Education: Prisons

Gordon Henderson: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what recent progress his Department has made on awarding the contract to deliver an education service to prisons on the Isle of Sheppey; and if he will make a statement.

Matthew Hancock: The Skills Funding Agency published the outcome of the procurement process to appoint a prison learning provider for Kent and Sussex, including the Isle of Sheppey prisons, on 23 August 2012. The contract has been awarded to The Manchester College.
	We said in ‘Making Prisons Work: Skills for Rehabilitation' (May 2011) that we would give prison Governors a decisive role in determining the skills provision in their establishments. None of the tenders submitted in the original September 2011 procurement exercise for prison learning in Kent and Sussex were judged to be acceptable by prison Governors, who were closely involved. The Skills Funding Agency, again working in close collaboration with prison Governors and their Heads of Learning and Skills, commenced a second procurement exercise in April. Bids were again evaluated locally and scored collaboratively, with joint agreement on the successful bidder.
	The contract will be closely monitored, with Governors playing a critical role. Lead Governors will meet quarterly with The Manchester College to discuss and monitor performance across the Kent and Sussex prisons. They will be particularly concerned to ensure the College's sub-contracting and partnership arrangements with local Kent colleges and with key voluntary and charitable sector organisations are operating effectively to deliver the new responsiveness to local needs that I am determined to secure.
	These local Governor-led discussions in Kent and Sussex will replicate those that will take place in all contract areas across England.
	The Skills Funding Agency will work closely with prison Governors to ensure their local discussions with providers are backed up by rigorous and decisive contract compliance action where requested. In addition to a formal, annual review of each of the prison learning contracts, the Agency will act ‘out of cycle' where performance data or Ofsted inspections, carried out as part of Her Majesty's Inspectorate of Prisons inspections, show that contract requirements are not being met. Decisive action will follow if prison learning contractors fail to deliver.

Electronic Surveillance: Export Controls

Caroline Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what representations he has received about reports that FinFisher surveillance ware sold by Gamma International UK has been used to monitor human rights activists in Bahrain; if he will make it his policy to put in place export controls on surveillance technology; and if he will make a statement.

Michael Fallon: My right hon. friend the Secretary of State has received no such representations. Some surveillance equipment already falls within the dual-use controls currently applicable in the UK if, for example, it is designed to use controlled cryptography. These controls, agreed at the Wassenaar Arrangement (WA), are set out in Category 5, Part 2 of Annex I to the EU Dual-Use Regulation (Council Regulation (EC) No 428/2009).
	The Government believes that the existence of software designed to penetrate the defences of computers and communications devices and to record, modify and/or relay data without the user's knowledge poses a threat to national security, industry, and commerce, as well as to human rights. Information security is a key concern of governments worldwide and is specifically addressed through existing Wassenaar controls. That is why we consider the WA to be the appropriate forum for considering further controls in this area.
	The Government's view is that concerted action at international level is the best option, if further regulation is required. We do not have any plans to impose unilateral controls; however we will continue to keep this option under review.

Higher Education: Admissions

Claire Perry: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills if he will estimate the annual cost to the public purse of maintaining the number of university places in 2012-13 at the 2011-12 level.

David Willetts: I refer my hon. Friend to the answer I have given to my hon. Friend the Member for East Surrey (Mr Gyimah) today, PQ number 118440.

Higher Education: Admissions

Sam Gyimah: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills if he will estimate the annual cost to the public purse of maintaining the number of university places in 2012-13 at the 2011-12 level.

David Willetts: If the number of university places had been maintained between 2011-12 and 2012-13 an additional 10,000 entrants would have required funding. The extra student finance costs for these students could have been around £16 million per year in maintenance grants and around £100 million per year in additional fee and maintenance loans (or £32 million per year in resource terms, i.e. net of the expected value of future loan repayment).

India

Ian Paisley Jnr: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what the percentage cap is for foreign direct investment sector in India.

Michael Fallon: There is no overall cap for investors seeking to enter the market; however, there are limits placed on foreign direct investment (FDI) in India which vary according to sector.

India

Ian Paisley Jnr: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what assessment he has made of the likely effect of the Government's immigration reforms on temporary foreign workers from India.

Mark Harper: I have been asked to reply 
	on behalf of the Home Department.
	The Government has made changes to the conditions of entry to the UK labour market for skilled workers from outside the EU in order to reduce the numbers coming in while ensuring British employers are still able to access the brightest and best international talent. These changes include the introduction of an annual limit, requiring that all migrant workers have a specific job offer, raising the minimum skills level, reforms to the arrangements for intra-company transfers, and reforms which break the link between work and staying in the UK permanently. These changes affect workers from India in the same way as workers from any other country outside the European economic area.
	Full details can be found via:
	www.homeoffice.gov.uk/passports-and-immigration/immigration-policy/

India

Ian Paisley Jnr: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills if he will take steps to encourage the deregulation of legal and professional services in India.

Michael Fallon: The Government continues to lobby the Government of India at both ministerial and official level making the case that deregulation of the financial services sector would benefit consumers in India as well as UK businesses. These discussions are included in the ongoing EU-India Free Trade Agreement (FTA) negotiations. We continue to push for a timely and successful resolution of these negotiations.

London Metropolitan University

David Lammy: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what assessment his Department has made of the effect of withdrawing highly trusted sponsor status from London Metropolitan University on international students that have (a) already completed one academic year at the university and (b) been admitted but have yet to enrol for their first year of their course.

David Willetts: The Department has asked Higher Education Funding Council for England (HEFCE) to lead a task force to help new and continuing London Metropolitan University students affected by the UK Border Agency's decision to revoke the university's licence to sponsor non-EU students. The task force will support London Metropolitan and other higher education providers in finding suitable, alternative courses for legitimate students so that they can continue their studies in the UK.

London Metropolitan University

David Lammy: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what assessment he has made of the potential effect of withdrawing highly trusted sponsor status from London Metropolitan University on the budget to teach current UK- and EU-domiciled students.

David Willetts: The Higher Education Funding Council for England (HEFCE) have a responsibility to monitor the financial health of all institutions. They are in regular dialogue with the university to assess the financial implications of losing highly trusted status. Our priority is to ensure that all the University's students can access the help and advice they need and we are supporting the university through the recently established Task Force

London Metropolitan University

David Lammy: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills how his Department will ensure that the withdrawal of London Metropolitan University's highly trusted sponsor status does not diminish the standing of the UK universities amongst international students.

David Willetts: A task force led by Higher Education Funding Council for England (HEFCE) has been established to help London Metropolitan University to support the overseas students affected by the UK Border Agency's (UKBA) decision to revoke the university's licence to sponsor non-EU students. Its aim is to support London Met and other higher education providers in finding suitable, alternative courses for legitimate students so that they can continue their studies in the UK.
	We recognise the concerns for legitimate overseas students who will be affected by the UKBA decision and our top priority is to ensure that the University's students who are due to commence their studies in 2012-13 are given the help and advice they need. London Metropolitan University has established a Help Centre to support and advise students. Updates and guidance for students and other stakeholders are also available on the London Metropolitan University, HEFCE and UKBA websites.
	Within Government we have developed key messages with supporting questions and answers to provide assurance to international students, overseas governments and other stakeholders. Guidance has already been issued to posts in British embassies and to partner organisations such as the British Council and Universities UK's (UUK) International Unit to ensure greater communications reach.

Medicine: Education

Keith Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills 
	(1)  what proportion of students left their university medical degree courses before completion in (a) 2009, (b) 2010, (c) 2011 and (d) 2012 to date;
	(2)  what proportion of students left their medicine courses voluntarily before completion in each university in (a) 2009, (b) 2010, (c) 2011 and (d) 2012; and what proportion of students were asked to leave before completion of such courses.

David Willetts: Information on the proportion of students who do not continue their higher education course following the year of entry is published by the Higher Education Statistics Agency (HESA) as part of the Higher Education Performance Indicators. Table 1 shows this information by subject area for students entering higher education courses in 2008/09 and 2009/10. Non-continuation rates are not available by subject area and institution in combination.
	Figures for students entering courses in the 2010/11 academic year will become available from March 2012.
	
		
			 Non-continuation following year of entry of full-time first degree UK domiciled entrants by subject area 2008/09 to 2009/10 
			  Entrants in 2009/10 
			  Continue or qualify at same HEI Transfer to other UK HEI No longer in HE Total 
			 Subject area Number Percentage Number Percentage Number Percentage Number 
			 (1) Medicine and dentistry 8,590 97.4 35 0.4 190 2.2 8,820 
			 (A1) Pre-clinical medicine and (A3) Clinical medicine 7,445 97.4 30 0.4 165 2.2 7,640 
			 All others in Medicine and dentistry 1,145 97.3 5 0.5 25 2.2 1,175 
			 (2) Subjects allied to medicine 28,520 89.2 610 1.9 2,840 8.9 31,970 
			 (3) Biological sciences 36,195 89.2 955 2.4 3,410 8.4 40,565 
			 (4) Veterinary science 760 96.9 5 0.8 20 2.3 785 
			 (5) Agriculture and related subjects 2,370 89.1 45 1.6 250 9.3 2,660 
			 (6) Physical sciences 15,760 91.1 365 2.1 1,165 6.7 17,290 
			 (7) Mathematical sciences 7,095 92.0 195 2.5 425 5.5 7,715 
			 (8) Computer science 14,745 83.8 515 2.9 2,340 13.3 17,600 
			 (9) Engineering and technology 18,180 85.9 660 3.1 2,325 11.0 21,165 
			 (A) Architecture, building and planning 7,795 87.5 260 2.9 850 9.6 8,905 
			 (B) Social studies 32,670 89.9 700 1.9 2,960 8.1 36,325 
			 (C) Law 14,960 89.6 415 2.5 1,320 7.9 16,695 
			 (D) Business and administrative studies 38,655 88.0 1,025 2.3 4,260 9.7 43,940 
			 (E) Mass communications and documentation 11,075 87.0 305 2.4 1,345 10.6 12,725 
			 (F) Languages 21,570 92.1 480 2.0 1,370 5.8 23,420 
			 (G) Historical and philosophical studies 16,250 92.8 360 2.0 910 5.2 17,520 
			 (H) Creative arts and design 39,015 88.2 895 2.0 4.320 9.8 44,235 
			 (I) Education 15.570 91.5 190 1.1 1,260 7.4 17,020 
			 (J) Combined 1,220 82.4 60 4.1 200 13.6 1,480 
			 Total 331,005 89.3 8,075 2.2 31,755 8.6 370,830 
		
	
	
		
			  Entrants in 2008/09 
			  Continue or qualify at same HEI Transfer to other UK HEI No longer in HE Total 
			 Subject area Percentage Number Percentage Number Percentage Number Percentage 
			 (1) Medicine and dentistry 8,595 97.6 45 0.5 170 1.9 8,805 
			 (A1) Pre-clinical medicine and (A3) Clinical medicine 7,455 97.5 40 0.5 155 2.0 7,645 
			 All others in Medicine and dentistry 1,140 98.4 5 0.3 15 1.3 1,160 
			 (2) Subjects allied to medicine 25,910 89.5 765 2.6 2,275 7.9 28,950 
			 (3) Biological sciences 33,995 89.4 1,070 2.8 2,970 7.8 38,035 
		
	
	
		
			 (4) Veterinary science 765 96.5 5 0.8 20 2.8 795 
			 (5) Agriculture and related subjects 2,195 90.5 45 1.9 185 7.7 2,425 
			 (6) Physical sciences 15,175 91.1 445 2.7 1,030 6.2 16,650 
			 (7) Mathematical sciences 6,575 90.3 225 3.1 485 6.7 7,285 
			 (8) Computer science 13,935 84.7 575 3.5 1,940 11 .B 16,450 
			 (9) Engineering and technology 17,000 86.2 730 3.7 2,000 10.1 19,735 
			 (A) Architecture, building and planning 8,055 87.9 315 3.4 790 8.6 9,160 
			 (B) Social studies 32,220 89.9 865 2.4 2,750 7.7 35,835 
			 (C) Law 15,020 89.1 500 3.0 1,340 7.9 16,855 
			 (D) Business and administrative studies 37,585 87.5 1,355 3.2 4,015 9.3 42,955 
			 (E) Mass communications and documentation 10,685 87.2 375 3.1 1,190 9.7 12,255 
			 (F) Languages 21,400 91.9 610 2.6 1,290 5.5 23,295 
			 (G) Historical and philosophical studies 15,725 92.3 395 2.3 915 5.4 17,040 
			 (H) Creative arts and design 36,965 88.9 1,125 2.7 3,510 8.4 41,605 
			 (I) Education 14,475 91.5 250 1.6 1,095 6.9 15,820 
			 (J) Combined 1,350 82.9 45 2.9 230 14.2 1,630 
			 Total 317,630 89.3 9,740 2.7 26,210 7.9 355,580 
			 Notes: 1. Medicine and dentistry subject area has been disaggregated into the Principal subjects: (A1) Pre-clinical medicine and (A3) Clinical medicine. 2. All others in medicine and dentistry includes the principal subjects: (A2) Pre-clinical dentistry, (A4) Clinical dentistry, (A9) Others in medicine and dentistry . 3. For specifications and definitions, see: http://www.hesa.ac.uk/pis/noncon 4. In this table 0. 1, 2 are rounded to 0. All other numbers are rounded up or down to the nearest multiple of 5. 5. Percentages are not subject to rounding, but those calculated on populations which contain 52 or fewer individuals are suppressed and represented as '..'

Olympic Games 2012

Michael Meacher: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what the evidential basis is for the statement that the UK will make £13 billion from the London 2012 Olympic Games.

Michael Fallon: holding answer 5 September 2012
	The figure of £13bn is derived from UK Trade & Investment (UKTI) and Visit Britain's forecasts of the potential economic benefit to the UK economy arising from the Games over time. These include new trade and investment deals stimulated by activity during Games time through the British Business Embassy Programme and related events, and in the following four years, including business won from high value opportunities promoted during the Games, business won on the back of the global spot-light afforded by the Games for UK expertise and companies, and an increase in international tourism and investment.
	UK Trade & Investment's forecast took account of: economic benefits generated by Hosts of previous Games; levels of inward investment delivered by UK Trade & Investment since winning the Games and from the Global Investment Conference; current high value opportunities open to UK business; the high level of global business interactions that UKTI will be facilitating during and after the summer; and experience from UKTI's Performance Impact and Monitoring Survey (PIMS) data.

Science

Chi Onwurah: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills on what date he plans to publish the 2012 SET Statistics summarising key science, engineering and technology indicators.

David Willetts: The Department for Business, Innovation and Skills plans to publish the 2012 SET Statistics later this month. The exact date will be announced nearer the time.

Sunday Trading

Gareth Johnson: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills whether his Department plans to investigate the possibility of a permanent relaxation of Sunday trading laws.

Michael Fallon: The suspension of the current Sunday trading regulations applies to the specified period from 22 July to 9 September. New legislation would be required for any extension. The Department is examining the impact of the Olympic period suspension.

Sunday Trading

Gareth Johnson: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what assessment his Department has made of the effect of suspending Sunday trading regulations during the Olympic and Paralympic Games on the economy in (a) London and (b) England and Wales.

Michael Fallon: The suspension of the current Sunday trading regulations applies to the specified period from 22 July to 9 September. New legislation would be required for any extension.
	The Department has requested data on the impact of the suspension from a number of large retailers including the impact on sales and employment.
	In addition the Department will analyse the impact on the retail sales of small retailers using the ONS retail sales index.

Trade: British Overseas Territories

Andrew Percy: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what steps he is taking to increase trade and investment between the UK and its Overseas Territories.

Michael Fallon: holding answer 6 September 2012
	The paper “BIS and the Overseas Territories”, published in May 2012, confirmed the UK Government's support for the sustainable economic development of the Overseas Territories, for all of whom, trade is an important part of the Government's ambitious overall vision for the future.
	UK Trade & Investment (UKTI), the Government's trade and inward investment promotion organisation, provides practical support for eligible investors and exporters, and its Spending Review settlement funds its current service offering, with the amount and geographical spread of its overseas resource reflecting demand for support from UK companies and the UK's strategic priorities for markets of the future. Accordingly, UKTI's eligibility criteria specifically require businesses to have a UK operating address before they can be considered for UKTI support. UKTI will, therefore, provide assistance to Overseas Territories businesses where they have an active UK trading address. UKTI will, however, on a case by case basis and resources permitting, consider requests for help from Overseas Territories Companies in liaising with a foreign government on trade and investment promotion issues.

Vocational Guidance

Andrew Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what progress his Department has made in improving access to high quality careers advice and guidance.

Matthew Hancock: In April 2012 the Government launched the National Careers Service. The new service offers information, advice and guidance through three easily accessible routes: a single free phone telephone helpline service, including web chat and text message; face to face guidance in the community for adults aged 19 and over (or 18 if on out of work benefits); and a website with details of how to access the other two channels. The face to face service currently operates from over 3,250 locations where it is co-located with other organisations, including 198 further education colleges.
	Following trials to enhance the co-location of the National Careers Service with Jobcentres we have increased the number of jobcentre offices with a careers adviser presence to 557 (95%). All Jobcentres will provide access for their claimants to the National Careers Service through telephone and web, where advisers cannot be available, by the end of September 2012.

CABINET OFFICE

Community Development

Hilary Benn: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what his policy is on reporting arrangements for community organisers, and on how they will report back to local voluntary and community organisations in the areas in which they are working; and if he will make a statement.

Nick Hurd: The work of the Organisers is independent of Government, local authorities and voluntary organisations, with local people setting the priorities and projects to take forward. Core to the work of Organisers is empowering local people to take action on the things that matter most to them. The Organisers facilitate this process by empowering communities but does not set an agenda. Therefore there are no formal reporting arrangements in place to feedback to communities but information on the programme is available on the Community Organisers’ website:
	http://www.cocollaborative.org.uk/

Correspondence

Lyn Brown: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what the average time taken was by his Department to reply to correspondence from hon. Members and Peers in the last 12 months; and for what proportion of letters the time taken to send a response was longer than (a) one month, (b) six weeks, (c) two months, (d) three months and (e) six months in that period.

Francis Maude: The Cabinet Office, on an annual basis, publishes a report to Parliament on the performance of Departments in replying to Members' and Peers' correspondence. The report for 2011 was published on 15 March 2012, Official Report, columns 30-33WS.

Employment: Lone Parents

Stephen Hepburn: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office how many single parents were (a) in employment and (b) unemployed in (i) Jarrow constituency, (ii) South Tyneside, (iii) the North East and (iv) nationally in each of the last five years.

Nick Hurd: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the authority to reply.
	Letter from Stephen Penneck, dated September 2012
	As Director General for the Office for National Statistics, I have been asked to reply to your question asking what estimate has been made of the number of lone parents who are in a) employment and b) unemployment in (i) Jarrow constituency, (ii) South Tyneside, (iii) the North East and (iv) nationally in each of the last five years. (118925)
	Estimates of the number of lone parents who are in employment and unemployed are derived from the Annual Population Survey (APS) household datasets. However, due to the specific nature of your request it is not possible to provide reliable estimates for Jarrow and South Tyneside because the sample sizes for this survey are not sufficiently large enough. This is also the case for unemployed lone parents in the North East.
	In the tables provided are:
	Number of lone parents in employment in the North East and UK
	Number of lone parents unemployed in the UK
	
		
			 Table 1: Number of lone parents employed(1) and resident in the North East and the UK in each year since 2007 
			 Thousand 
			 12 months ending December: North East UK 
			 2007 43 967 
			 2008 44 1,003 
			 2009 46 1,024 
			 2010 47 1,031 
			 2011 40 1,029 
			 (1) Levels of employment are provided for persons aged 16 and over. Source: Annual Population Survey 
		
	
	
		
			 Table 2: Number of lone parents unemployed(1) and resident in the UK in each year since 2007 
			 Thousand 
			 12 months ending December: UK 
			 2007 102 
			 2008 132 
			 2009 160 
			 2010 174 
			 2011 191 
			 (1) Levels of unemployment are provided for persons aged 16 and over. Source: Annual Population Survey

Government Departments: Computer Software

Gordon Henderson: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what estimate he has made of the level of savings which could be achieved if Government departments replaced proprietary software with open source software.

Francis Maude: Open source software can deliver significant savings, as indicated by evidence from both the public and private sectors, in the UK and overseas. However it is not always the best solution, and as such the scenario of replacing all software has not been costed.

Government Departments: Computer Software

Mark Pritchard: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office if he will issue guidance to Government departments on the removal of computer games from Government computers.

Francis Maude: There are already clear guidelines that all civil servants follow relating to the use of Government computers for non-business purposes.

Government Departments: Industrial Relations

Toby Perkins: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office 
	(1)  which Government Departments and agencies run formal non-trade-union staff consultation bodies, groups or forums in addition to industrial relations agreements with trade unions;
	(2)  how many hours are spent by staff on formal non-trade-union staff consultation bodies, groups or forums in each Government (a) Department and (b) agency;
	(3)  how many staff on formal non-trade-union staff consultation bodies, groups or forums in Government agencies and Departments receive paid time off work to perform their duties and activities;
	(4)  how many staff on formal non-trade-union staff consultation bodies, groups or forums receive paid time off work to perform duties and activities in Government Departments and agencies where there is an existing industrial relations agreement with trade unions;
	(5)  how many staff of formal non-trade-union staff consultation bodies, groups or forums in Government Departments and agencies have been elected to their place.

Francis Maude: The information requested is not held centrally. Staff consultation bodies, staff associations, groups or forums are a matter for individual Departments and agencies to determine.
	However most civil service Departments and agencies have long established procedures for informing and consulting employees and their representatives, including non trade union bodies, such as staff associations.
	The Cabinet Office recently launched a consultation with the civil service trade unions into how much paid time civil servants should be allowed to take off work so they can take part in trade union duties and activities during office hours.

Government Departments: Postal Services

Geoffrey Clifton-Brown: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office if he will take steps to encourage Government departments and agencies to use A5 pre-paid envelopes rather than A4; and if he will estimate the potential savings from implementing such a strategy across Government.

Francis Maude: The standardisation and rationalisation of printed products and envelopes is a core objective of the Print Strategy for Central Government. Work is already under way to build on previous successful initiatives like transferring from C4 to C5 envelopes and is expected to make savings.
	The lack of historic spend information at unit pricing level prevents an accurate forecast of potential savings. However, these data are now captured and we will be able to quantify savings going forward.

NDPBs

Philip Hollobone: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what his latest estimate is of the number of quangos there will be at the end of this Parliament compared to the beginning.

Francis Maude: By the end of this Parliament, the Government will have reduced the number of public bodies by a third.

Public Sector: Procurement

Lyn Brown: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office whether a bid by a company for a Government contract has to conform to (a) ethical guidelines and (b) other criteria before it will be given preliminary consideration.

Francis Maude: Contracts are awarded on the basis of value for money but wider social, environmental and ethical criteria can be taken into account if they relate directly to the subject matter of a contract from the point of view of the contracting authority.

Public Sector: Procurement

Peter Aldous: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what steps his Department is taking to streamline and simplify public sector procurement to make it easier for small and medium-sized enterprises to win public sector contracts.

Richard Graham: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office 
	(1)  what steps his Department is taking to make it easier for small and medium-sized enterprises to win public sector contracts;
	(2)  how many small and medium-sized enterprises in (a) Gloucester, (b) the South West and (c) England have won public sector contracts in each of the last five years.

David Evennett: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what recent estimate he has made of the proportion of Government procurement contracts that have been won by small and medium-sized businesses.

Francis Maude: Over the past 18 months we have opened up the way Government does business in order to ensure that small companies, charities and voluntary organisations are in the best possible position to compete for contracts. We have also:
	made public procurement more transparent by publishing tenders and contracts through the ‘Contracts Finder' website.
	introduced a new eSourcing solution, the Dynamic Marketplace, on which SMEs are able to provide quick quotes for low value contracts (below £100,000).
	piloted a new online service for procurers to invite the SME market to respond, in advance of a formal procurement, to emerging opportunities to deliver government business more efficiently.
	introduced a ‘Mystery Shopper' scheme to allow suppliers to report bad procurement practice.
	published pipelines of Government Business to enable suppliers to marshal their resources and prepare to bid for future work.
	worked actively with Government departments to ensure that, where practicable, procurements are broken up into smaller lots. This will ensure that we create diversity in the supply base and in particular increase the number of SMEs awarded new business directly.
	Furthermore, we have introduced a new LEAN sourcing process for central government which aims to reduce procurement timescales substantially. Departments must procure all but the most complex goods and services within 120 days,
	On 9 March we published the “One Year On” Progress Report, which gives a breakdown by department of spend with Small and Medium-Sized Enterprises (SMEs), up to December 2011. The Report is available at:
	http://www.cabinetoffice.gov.uk/resource-library/making-government-business-more-accessible-smes-one-year
	Since January 2011, central Government Departments have been required to publish on Contracts Finder information on the contracts they award, at:
	www.contractsfinder.businesslink.gov.uk/
	We do not hold contract information broken down regionally, but prior to 2010 very limited information was held or published on any government contract spend.

Third Sector

Gareth Thomas: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what steps he has taken to put into practice the recommendations of the National Audit Office's review of Central Government's implementation of the National Compact published in January 2012.

Nick Hurd: This Government views the Compact with great importance. Good progress is being made and the Compact has now been included as one of only six cross-Whitehall priorities in Departmental Business plans.

Voluntary Work: Young People

Gareth Thomas: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what steps he is taking to ensure that the winner of the National Citizenship Service contract upholds and implements the undertakings outlined in the National Compact.

Nick Hurd: The delivery of NCS will uphold the undertakings outlined in the National Compact.

TREASURY

Air Passenger Duty

Christopher Pincher: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will commission a report to determine the optimum level of air passenger duty in respect of receipts to the Exchequer.

Sajid Javid: The Government consulted extensively on air passenger duty (APD) following Budget 2011. The Government's response, published on 6 December 2011 can be found online at:
	http://www.hm-treasury.gov.uk/2011budget_airpassenger.htm
	The Government set out APD rates from April 2013 at Budget 2012.

Air Passenger Duty

Andrew Turner: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how much his Department has raised from air passenger duty in each year since 2007; if he will estimate the proportion of the change in each such year that results from (a) higher duty levels and (b) an increase in flights in each such year; and if he will estimate the amount paid per individual in each such year.

Sajid Javid: No breakdown between duty levels and the number of flights is available for air passenger duty revenues. However, data on air passenger duty receipts and passenger numbers are published online at:
	https://www.uktradeinfo.com/Statistics/Pages/TaxAndDutyBulletins.aspx

Air Passenger Duty

Katy Clark: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what assessment he has made of whether the Retail Price Index is a more appropriate measure of inflation than the Consumer Price Index for air passenger duty rises from 2010 to 2014.

Sajid Javid: The above inflation increase in Air Passenger Duty rates in 2010 was legislated for by the previous Government. This Government froze Air Passenger Duty in 2011. The subsequent increases in APD, including the RPI increase announced for 2013-14, maintain the real value of the duty.

Air Passenger Duty: Northern Ireland

Margaret Ritchie: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer 
	(1)  if he will estimate the likely effect of lowering airport passenger duty on the economy of Northern Ireland;
	(2)  what assessment he has made of the effect of air passenger duty on (a) the tourism industry and (b) businesses in Northern Ireland.

Sajid Javid: From 1 November 2011, the APD rates for direct long haul flights departing from Northern Ireland were cut to the short-haul rate. The Government confirmed at Budget 2012 that the power to set APD rates for direct long haul flights departing from Northern Ireland will be devolved to the Northern Ireland Assembly. This will protect vital direct air services and offers a chance for the development of new long haul services, supporting business and tourism.
	The Government undertook a consultation on air passenger duty last year, which generated considerable views and evidence on the impact of APD. The consultation received over 500 responses from a wide range of stakeholders, including from the tourism sector, and other business sectors in Northern Ireland.
	The Government's response, published on 6 December 2011, can be found online at:
	http://www.hm-treasury.gov.uk/2011budget_airpassenger.htm

Bank of England

John Mann: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer 
	(1)  when he expects to advertise for applications to be the next Governor of the Bank of England;
	(2)  when he expects to finalise a job specification for the next Governor of the Bank of England;
	(3)  what parliamentary scrutiny he proposes for the appointment of the next Governor of the Bank of England;
	(4)  when he expects to propose a candidate for the next Governor of the Bank of England.

Greg Clark: The current Governor's term expires on 30 June 2013. The process for appointing his successor will commence in due course.

Banks

Priti Patel: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether his Department has had discussions with the Financial Services Authority on the granting of more banking licences.

Greg Clark: Last month the Government published a White Paper on Banking Reform. In this, the Chancellor of the Exchequer announced that the Financial Services Authority (FSA) and the Bank of England are conducting reviews of the prudential and conduct requirements for new entrants to the banking sector to ensure that they are proportionate and do not pose excessive barriers to entry or expansion for new entrants and prospective new entrants to the banking market.
	Treasury officials are in touch with the FSA on this work. The conclusions of the reviews will be published in the autumn.

Banks

Priti Patel: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether his Department considered undertaking a consultation on the separation of high street banking divisions from investing banking divisions.

Greg Clark: The Government have consulted, in the Banking Reform White Paper, on the separation of retail and investment banking as recommended by the Independent Commission on Banking. The consultation closed on 6 September.
	The Government will carry out pre-legislative scrutiny on the Bill in the autumn, and plan to complete all necessary legislation by the end of this Parliament.

Banks: Loans

Karen Lumley: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what assessment he has made of whether the Bank of England's funding for lending scheme will benefit businesses in Redditch.

Greg Clark: The Funding for Lending Scheme is designed to incentivise banks and building societies to boost their lending to UK households and non-financial companies. Easier access to cheaper bank borrowing should boost spending in the economy, for example by allowing families to purchase homes, or by enabling firms to finance investment in productive enterprises. In turn, higher spending will help create jobs and raise incomes.

Business: Loans

Priti Patel: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will consider establishing a facility within the Bank of England to lend directly to businesses.

Greg Clark: The Government are not considering establishing a facility within the Bank of England to lend directly to businesses.

Debts

Damian Hinds: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what recent estimate he has made of the average level of non-mortgage debt per (a) person and (b) household, by (i) age group and (ii) income or socioeconomic group.

Sajid Javid: The ONS does not provide information on non-mortgage debt by age or by income group. Data published by the ONS show that the stock of unsecured lending per person was £3,300 in June 2012. The stock of unsecured lending per household was £7,800 in June 2012.

Excise Duties: Fuels

Dan Rogerson: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will extend the rural fuel rebate pilot scheme to sparsely populated areas on the mainland.

Sajid Javid: The EU unanimously agreed at the end of 2011 that the UK could put in place a rural fuel duty rebate pilot scheme for remote islands. Pump prices in these areas are particularly high when compared with the mainland because of the high costs of transporting and distributing fuel. Beyond this pilot scheme which the Government will continue to monitor, nothing has been ruled in or out.

Financial Services: Complaints

Mark Garnier: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer 
	(1)  what his policy is on the introduction of a long stop in respect of the liability faced by independent financial advisers;
	(2)  whether his Department has considered the potential effects of the absence of a long stop in respect of the liability faced by independent financial advisers on their ability to take out personal indemnity insurance; and if he will make a statement.

Sajid Javid: The Financial Services Authority (FSA), an independent body, is responsible for rules relating to the liability of independent financial advisers. I have asked the FSA to write to my hon. Friend on the issue he raises. A copy of the response will be placed in the Library of the House.

Financial Services: Education

Mark Garnier: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what discussions he has had with the Money Advice Service on financial education in schools; and if he will make a statement.

Greg Clark: Treasury Ministers have discussions with a wide variety of organisations in the public and private sectors. As was the case with previous administrations, it is not the Government's practice to provide details of all such discussions.
	Details of MAS's financial education work in 2011-12 and its planned work for 2012-13 can be found in its annual review for 2011-12 published in August. The business plan and annual review can be found at:
	www.moneyadviceservice.org.uk/en/static/publications

Green Investment Bank

Katy Clark: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will give consideration to directing all future quantitative easing measures through the Green Investment Bank.

Greg Clark: The independent Monetary Policy Committee's (MPC) policy tools, including quantitative easing (QE) via the Asset Purchase Facility (APF), are macroeconomic policy tools designed to affect the economy as a whole, in order to meet the 2% inflation target over the medium term.
	QE is designed to raise the level of spending in the economy by increasing the amount of money in circulation. Under this policy, the Bank of England purchases assets, largely from the non-bank financial sector, financing these by the creation of central bank reserves.
	The MPC is authorised to use the APF for monetary policy purposes. The Bank's Executive Directors for Markets and for Monetary Analysis and Statistics are Directors of the APF. The Directors make recommendations on the assets to be purchased to the Governor, who decides after consulting with the two Deputy Governors.

PAYE

Stephen Timms: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what budget he has allocated for advertising the change to real-time PAYE reporting in advance of its introduction in April 2013.

David Gauke: HMRC was allocated £108 million as part of the SR10 allocation to deliver the RTI programme. This includes all aspects of delivery from IT development to communications and marketing spend. HMRC have not ring-fenced any of this overall budget for communications and marketing. Instead HMRC are continuously monitoring the impact of their communication and marketing work and will continue to allocate funding in line with the communication needs identified.
	HMRC's communication strategy is based on principles established through customer insight work. It is designed so that employers are fully aware of what RTI means for them and how to prepare.
	The customer insight and message testing already undertaken by HMRC has clearly indicated that there is an optimum time to make contact with employers. The research has clearly indicated that the best time to contact employers is when they actually need to do something.
	HMRC will deploy a range of communications activities to ensure all employers are aware of their obligations under RTI.

Pensions

John Mann: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what discussions he has had with industry on changes to drawdown pensions.

David Gauke: Treasury Ministers and officials have meetings with a wide variety of organisations in the public and private sectors as part of the process of policy development and delivery.
	Details of ministerial and permanent secretary meetings with external organisations on departmental business are published on a quarterly basis and are available at:
	http://www.hm-treasury.gov.uk/minister_hospitality.htm
	Details of officials' meetings with external organisations are not held centrally and it would entail disproportionate cost to collate this information.

Pensions

John Mann: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether he has any plans to investigate the financial situation of pensioners with drawdown pensions.

David Gauke: The Government continually keep all aspects of their policies under review and are committed to maintaining flexibility for those with drawdown arrangements.

Personal Savings

Damian Hinds: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what recent estimate he has made of the average level of non-retirement savings per (a) person and (b) household, by (i) age group and (ii) income or socioeconomic group.

Sajid Javid: The ONS does not provide information on non-retirement savings by age or by income group. Some additional information of interest may be found in the ONS wealth and asset survey. Data from the ONS show total financial assets excluding pensions and reserves were approximately £34,000 per person and £80,000 per household, in June 2012.

Premium Bonds

Damian Hinds: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what proportion of people hold premium bonds; and what information his Department holds on trends over time in the proportion of people who hold premium bonds.

Greg Clark: The following table shows the number of customers holding Premium Bonds from April 2009.
	
		
			 Date Number of customers 
			 20 April 2009 22,122,282 
			 19 April 2010 21,938,954 
			 18 April 2011 21,803,536 
			 16 April 2012 21,676,187 
			 3 September 2012 21,570,030

Royal Bank of Scotland and Ulster Bank

Margaret Ritchie: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer 
	(1)  what discussions he has had with the Northern Ireland Finance Minister on the Ulster Bank technical incident compensation scheme;
	(2)  what discussions he has had with representatives of Royal Bank of Scotland and Ulster Bank on the technical incident compensation scheme.

Greg Clark: Ministers speak to the Northern Irish finance minister regularly on a range of issues.
	During RBS's difficulties, Ministers and officials, alongside other regulatory bodies, had regular contact with the Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS) to ensure that they were doing everything they could to resolve their technical difficulties as quickly as possible.
	The Government welcome RBS and its subsidiary Ulster Bank's decision to compensate customers for the difficulties they faced. However, the specifics of the compensation scheme are a commercial matter for the bank and for the Financial Services Authority (FSA).
	RBS have committed to carry out a full and detailed investigation into the causes of the problem, overseen by independent experts, and to publish the findings.

Stamp Duty Land Tax

David Hamilton: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer 
	(1)  how many people benefited from the stamp duty land tax relief available to first-time buyers on purchases under £250,000 between 25 March 2010 and 24 March 2012 in (a) Midlothian constituency, (b) Scotland and (c) the UK;
	(2)  how much revenue has been raised from stamp duty land tax for properties under £250,000 since 24 March 2012; and how many transactions were for (a) first-time buyers and (b) other buyers;
	(3)  what assessment he made of the effects on the ability of people to gain access to the housing market of the stamp duty land tax relief available to first-time buyers on purchases under £250,000 between 25 March 2010 and 24 March 2012.

Sajid Javid: HMRC published a document in November last year evaluating the impact of first time buyers' relief on stamp duty land tax (SDLT), which is available online at:
	www.hmrc.gov.uk/research/sdlt-ftb-workingpaper.pdf
	This evaluation was based upon claims made up until August 2011. The analysis concluded that SDLT relief did not have a significant impact in terms of improving the affordability of residential property for first time buyers.
	The estimated number of transactions that benefitted from first time buyers' relief in Scotland was 9,800. For the UK as a whole, this number was 179,200. HMRC is unable to provide reliable data on first time buyers’ at a constituency level.
	In the period between 25 March and 31 July 2012, an estimated £235 million was raised through stamp duty land tax for residential properties under £250,000.
	It is not possible to distinguish between first-time buyers and other buyers during this period.

ENVIRONMENT FOOD AND RURAL AFFAIRS

Carbon Emissions: Business

Teresa Pearce: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what estimate he has made of the monetary value of the associated benefits of introducing mandatory carbon reporting for (a) listed companies on the London Stock Exchange, (b) listed companies on the Alternative Investment Market and (c) all companies covered under the Companies Act 2006.

Richard Benyon: holding answer 6 September 2012
	The final impact assessment for company greenhouse gas reporting, which is available on DEFRA's website, identified that there were approximately 1,100 quoted companies, i.e. UK-incorporated companies that are listed on the main market of the London Stock Exchange (or on the New York Stock Exchange or officially listed in a European economic area state). The estimated impacts for all quoted companies (option 2 in the impact assessment) over 10 years are compliance costs of £28 million and benefits of up to £741 million.
	No estimate was made of the costs and benefits for all companies. Option 3 in the impact assessment looked at introducing mandatory reporting for all large companies (as defined by the Companies Act 2006), which would cover approximately 24,000 large companies. Option 3 provides the widest coverage of companies modelled in the final impact assessment and could include some companies on the alternative investment market.
	The costs and benefits of companies listed on the alternative investment market have not been monetised.

Carbon Emissions: Business

Lisa Nandy: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what assessment his Department has made of the extent of business support for mandatory carbon reporting for (a) listed companies on the London Stock Exchange, (b) listed companies on the Alternative Investment Market and (c) all bodies subject to the provisions of the Companies Act 2006.

Richard Benyon: Assessment of the extent of business support for mandatory carbon reporting was only made for the four options outlined in the 2011 consultation.

Carbon Emissions: Business

Lisa Nandy: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what discussions he has had with companies listed on the London Stock Exchange on mandatory carbon reporting.

Richard Benyon: My noble Friend, Lord Taylor of Holbeach, and his predecessor, Lord Henley, have met a range of organisations representing quoted companies to discuss mandatory carbon reporting, including the Confederation of British Industry, the Aldersgate Group and the Freight Transport Association. DEFRA officials have also met representatives of London Stock Exchange companies and continue to do so.

Carbon Emissions: Business

Lisa Nandy: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what assessment his Department has made of the extent of business support for mandatory carbon reporting under each of the four options presented in his Department's consultation on greenhouse gas reporting.

Richard Benyon: The consultation on options last year received over 2,000 responses, with the majority of those from business supporting mandatory reporting. A summary of consultation responses was published on DEFRA's website on 20 June 2012, including a breakdown of business support for each option.

Carbon Emissions: Business

Lisa Nandy: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs whether he plans to (a) update his Department's guidance on greenhouse gas reporting for companies, (b) provide guidance on a single emissions reporting methodology for all mandated companies from April 2013 and (c) provide similar guidance for non-mandated companies.

Richard Benyon: DEFRA has published guidance for all companies to report on greenhouse gas emissions and this is available on the Department's website. We are considering what supplementary guidance will be required by companies that are mandated to report. There are a number of established methodologies on how to measure greenhouse gas emissions currently in use by companies, so we do not intend to require companies to adopt a single methodology.

Carbon Emissions: Business

Lisa Nandy: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what plans he has to introduce regulations on the scope of greenhouse gas emissions to be reported by quoted companies from April 2013; and whether these will implement options 1, 2 and 3 set out in his Department's consultation in 2011.

Richard Benyon: As announced on 20 June, UK regulations will be introduced for all quoted companies (option 2 as set out in the 2011 consultation). The intention is that the regulations will require companies to report their direct emissions, including fugitive emissions (scope 1 in the Greenhouse Gas Protocol) and indirect energy emissions (scope 2 in the Protocol).

Carbon Emissions: Business

Lisa Nandy: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what assessment he has made of the cost of including some or all Scope 3 emissions within the mandatory carbon reporting for quoted companies.

Richard Benyon: It would not be possible to require a company to disclose scope 3 information in its directors' report as scope 3 emissions occur beyond a company's organisational boundary. No modelling of costs has been done.

Cormorants: Pest Control

Julian Sturdy: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs when he expects his Department's review of cormorant licensing policy to be completed; and when he expects to publish a report.

Richard Benyon: The review, which is looking at the licensing process and management methods for controlling fish-eating birds where they cause, or are likely to cause, serious damage to inland fisheries, is expected to report to Ministers this year. Once completed the outcomes of the review will be made publicly available.

Fishing Catches

Ian Paisley Jnr: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what measures his Department plans to carry out to implement the discard ban under the Common Fisheries Policy.

Richard Benyon: The UK successfully made the case for the phased introduction of a landing obligation for commercial fish species throughout EU waters in the General Approach on the draft Common Fisheries Policy Regulation that was agreed by European Fisheries Ministers in June 2012.
	Included within the General Approach are a number of provisions designed to support member states in the implementation of a discard ban.
	However, the General Approach is not the end of the reform process, and the European Parliament will now give its views on the proposals. The regulation is not expected to be formally agreed until mid 2013. The UK continues to test fisheries management systems with fishermen, including Catch Quota management and the trial and introduction of selective gears to significantly reduce the level of discards. It is through such trials that we can gain accurate and practical information to implement any discard ban effectively.

Fishing Catches

Ian Paisley Jnr: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs 
	(1)  to which geographical areas the discard ban to begin in 2015 will apply;
	(2)  when he expects a discard ban to be fully implemented under the Common Fisheries Policy.

Richard Benyon: The UK successfully made the case for the phased introduction of a landing obligation for commercial fish species throughout EU waters in the General Approach on the draft Common Fisheries Policy (CFP) Regulation that was agreed by European Fisheries Ministers in June 2012. The General Approach includes a provisional date of 1 January 2014 for a landing obligation for pelagic species, with a phased introduction, starting in 2015 and fully in place by 2018, for other Northern Atlantic fisheries. For other waters, including the Mediterranean and Black Sea, the provisional phase-in period is from 2016 to 2019.
	These dates are not yet agreed, however, as the relevant provisions are still under negotiation. The European Parliament is also now considering the CFP proposals.

Floods: Insurance

Nigel Adams: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs pursuant to the written statement of 11 July 2012, Official Report, columns 29-30WS, on managing the impacts of flooding, 
	(1)  when his Department expects to make a final announcement on its plans for the future of flood insurance following the expiry of the Statement of Principles;
	(2)  what assessment he has made of the scope for improving the affordability of insurance in flood risk areas without increasing costs for those not at risk;
	(3)  what assessment he has made of the level of the current cross-subsidy in place between policyholders for insurance in flood risk areas and non-flood risk areas and of how this might be used to improve the affordability of insurance for those at flood risk.

Anne McIntosh: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what recent meetings he has had with representatives of insurance companies to discuss the replacement of the Statement of Principles for flood insurance when it expires in 2013; and if he will make a statement.

Richard Benyon: At present, the majority of households at significant flood risk do not pay a price that reflects their flood risk. Industry figures suggest that the cross-subsidy is around £150 million per year and that on average each high risk household benefits from a £430 cross-subsidy (Association of British Insurers, (ABI) 2010).
	We are looking to develop with insurers a model that delivers benefits to households in need of support while avoiding poorer policyholders subsidising wealthier ones.
	A number of options are under consideration, including an industry-led levy that would allow policyholders in high flood risk areas to continue to secure affordable insurance without having an impact on bills more generally since it would reflect existing pricing arrangements.
	Our priority is to resolve detailed design issues. Ministers continue to meet regularly with representatives from the insurance industry including with the ABI regarding the future of flood insurance. As was the case with previous Administrations, it is not the Government's practice to provide details of all such meetings.
	Discussions with the industry continue to be positive and further announcements will be forthcoming in due course.

Foxes: Lancashire

Andrew Stephenson: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs whether his Department has made an estimate of the population of foxes in (a) Pendle constituency and (b) Lancashire in each of the last 10 years.

Richard Benyon: DEFRA has not made an estimate of the population of foxes over the last 10 years. Fox population figure estimates for British mammals, published by the Mammal Society in 2004, indicate that the fox population in Great Britain was around 258,000.

Milk

Christopher Pincher: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs if he will consider implementing compulsory contracts for the dairy package of national milk production sales if the preferred method of voluntary contracts does not improve terms and conditions and price transparency.

David Heath: The Code of Best Practice on contractual negotiations should be given the necessary time to take effect.
	However, the question of legislation may be revisited at any time. The Government has committed several times to consult on compulsory contracts and I will do so this autumn.

Pets: Sales

David Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what guidance his Department issues on the (a) housing and (b) sale of animals in pet shops; what recent representations he has received on the issue; and if he will make a statement.

David Heath: Guidance for local authorities and pet shops on the welfare of animals sold in pet shops is contained in the publication ‘Model Standards for Pet Shop Licence Conditions’, which is produced jointly by the British Veterinary Association, the Chartered Institute for Environmental Health, the Ornamental Aquatic Trade Association and the Pet Care Trust. We understand that industry and welfare groups are looking to update the guidance. The Government therefore have no need to issue any guidance in this area. We are not aware of having received any representations in this area.

Pets: Sales

David Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs 
	(1)  what exotic animals may lawfully be sold in pet shops; whether he plans to make changes to that regime; and if he will make a statement;
	(2)  whether he plans to amend the regulatory system governing the sale of exotic animals and dangerous animals in pet shops; and if he will make a statement.

David Heath: There is no definitive list of animals that may be sold in pet shops. However, there are restrictions in place, for mainly conservation purposes, on the sale of certain species. There are no proposals to make any changes to this arrangement. The protection of the welfare of all animals in pet shops is provided under the Pet Animals Act 1951 and the Animal Welfare Act 2006.
	These Acts make it an offence for an owner or keeper to fail to provide for the welfare needs of their animal. The Pet Animals Act requires that any person selling pet animals must be licensed by their local authority. Before granting a licence, the authority must satisfy itself that the animals are kept in accommodation that is suitable and clean, that they are supplied with the appropriate food and drink, and are protected from disease and fire. Local authorities can only issue licences to applicants who will safeguard their animals' welfare in respect of providing accommodation, adequate and suitable food, drink and bedding, protection in the case of an emergency, prevention and control of infectious diseases, and the animal's ability to take adequate exercise. There are serious penalties for committing an offence under either of these Acts.
	In addition, the UK Government are committed to working with other countries to promote the conservation of the world's wildlife, including exotic animals, for example through membership of agreements such as the convention on international trade in endangered species of wild fauna and flora (CITES). Through CITES, 175 countries work to protect endangered species of plants and animals from unsustainable levels of trade by prohibiting, restricting or monitoring international trade in them. CITES prohibits the sale of wild-taken specimens of the most endangered species apart from in exceptional circumstances. Given the protection afforded to exotic animals under the Animal Welfare Act 2006, the Pet Animals Act 1951 (as amended in 1983), the Dangerous Wild Animals Act 1976 and the CITES agreement and EU Welfare in Transport Regulation (EC) No. 1/200, we do not feel there is a need for the selling and keeping of all exotic species to be prohibited. While it is unacceptable to cause unnecessary suffering to, or fail to provide for, an animal's welfare, we do not consider that the failings of a few should result in an outright prohibition for everyone else.

Pets: Sales

David Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs whether he plans to review regulations regarding pet shops in respect of (a) the age at which children can buy animals and (b) the conditions in which animals are kept; and if he will make a statement.

David Heath: There are no proposals to review the regulations relating to the welfare of animals sold in pet shops. The minimum age at which a person can buy animals (16 years) is contained in the Animal Welfare Act 2006, which was reviewed in 2010. There were no proposals to change the minimum age.

Plastic Bags

Madeleine Moon: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what assessment he has made of the implications for his policies of the evaluation of the introduction of the single-use carrier bag charge in Wales: Attitude change and behavioural spillover; and if he will make a statement.

Richard Benyon: We are monitoring the results of the charging scheme in Wales and the outcome of the consultations on a charge in other parts of the UK. We are concerned about the use of single-use carrier bags and the effect they have on the environment. The key message remains to reuse bags as often as possible.

Public Footpaths

Tom Blenkinsop: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what assessment he has made of the potential benefits of creating a National Trails Association to oversee national delivery and quality standards for national trails.

Richard Benyon: In April 2011, Natural England began a two year review programme to develop a new management model for National Trails. The model seeks to recognise that these are nationally important assets that should be secured for the future and require national support and guidance. However, it also seeks to embed localism into the delivery model, encourage increased use of trails by the public and maximise the potential of trails to contribute to local economies. Natural England has just consulted on its proposals and is now considering the responses to the consultation including the idea of creating a National Trails Association.

Rights of Way

Gordon Henderson: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what advice his Department provides to landowners on restoring public rights of way affected by the growing of crops; and if he will make a statement.

Richard Benyon: Under section 137A of the Highways Act 1980 it is an offence, subject to certain conditions, for a crop to encroach over a highway, and enforcement of the legislation is by the local highway authority. The need to restore public rights of way on land on which crops are grown is also a requirement under the Cross Compliance Regulations.
	DEFRA provides relevant guidance to landowners in the Natural England publication ‘Managing Public Access' and in the Rural Payment Agency's two publications on cross compliance, ‘Guide to Cross Compliance in England', and ‘Guidance for Cross Compliance in England: Management of Habitats and Landscape features'. The guidance states that the surface of disturbed cross-field footpaths or bridleways must be restored to the required width within specified periods of time.

White Fish: Conservation

Ian Paisley Jnr: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what amendments his Department has suggested for the review of the Cod Recovery Plan.

Richard Benyon: The European Commission has not formally brought forward its proposals for the review of Cod Recovery Plan; we expect these later in September. However, since the Commission has made its intention known my Department has been pressing the Commission, at every opportunity, for reform of the effort management rules to include a freeze on further effort reductions, as well as making the process for exempting vessels from effort controls simpler if they reduce their fishing mortality.

JUSTICE

Cats: Animal Welfare

Mark Menzies: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many people have been convicted of cruelty to cats under the Animal Welfare Act 2006 in each of the last five years.

Jeremy Wright: Information held centrally by the Ministry of Justice on the Court Proceedings Database does not contain information about the circumstances behind each case, beyond the description provided in the statute under which proceedings are brought. It is not possible to separately identify from centrally held information those specific cases of animal cruelty against a cat.
	The number of defendants found guilty at all courts for offences under the Animal Welfare Act 2006 in England and Wales from 2007 (commencement) to 2011 can be viewed in the table as follows.
	
		
			 Defendants found guilty at all courts for offences under the Animal Welfare Act 2006(1), England and Wales 2007 to 2011(2, 3) 
			  Number 
			 2007 34 
			 2008(4) 784 
			 2009 1,073 
			 2010 1,081 
			 2011 1,317 
			 (1 )Came into force in 2007. (2) The figures given in the table relate to persons for whom these offences were the principal offences for which they were dealt with. When a defendant has been found guilty of two or more offences it is the offence for which the heaviest penalty is imposed. Where the same disposal is imposed for two or more offences, the offence selected is the offence for which the statutory maximum penalty is the most severe. (3) Every effort is made to ensure that the figures presented are accurate and complete. However, it is important to note that these data have been extracted from large administrative data systems generated by the courts and police forces. As a consequence, care should be taken to ensure data collection processes and their inevitable limitations are taken into account when those data are used. (4) Excludes data for Cardiff magistrates court for April, July and August 2008. Source: Justice Statistics Analytical Services—Ministry of Justice

Civil Disorder

Richard Graham: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many people in (a) Gloucester and (b) England have been prosecuted for crimes carried out during the public disorder of August 2011 to date.

Jeremy Wright: Based on data available as at 8 June 2012, four defendants from Gloucester had been proceeded against for offences related to the public disorder between 6 and 9 August 2011.
	Based on data available as at 8 June 2012, 2,709 defendants from England had been proceeded against for offences related to the public disorder between 6 and 9 August 2011.

Correspondence

Lyn Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what the average time taken was by his Department to reply to correspondence from hon. Members and Peers in the last 12 months; and for what proportion of letters the time taken to send a response was longer than (a) one month, (b) six weeks, (c) two months, (d) three months and (e) six months in that period.

Jeremy Wright: The Ministry of Justice does not hold this information in the form requested. The Cabinet Office reports annually to Parliament on the performance of Departments in replying to Members' correspondence. The report for 2011 was published on 15 March 2012, Official Report, columns 30-33WS. Reports for earlier years are available in the Library of the House.

Court Orders: Prostitution

Mike Wood: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many engagement and support orders have been issued by courts under the Policing and Crime Act 2009 to date.

Jeremy Wright: The Ministry of Justice are aware of historical data recording issues concerning engagement and support orders following their introduction on 1 April 2010 under s.17 of the Policing and Crime Act 2009.
	This issue has now been resolved and data relating to engagement and support orders will be available for calendar year 2012.
	Annual court proceeding statistics for 2012 are planned for publication in May 2013.

Fire Prevention

George Freeman: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many fire protection units his Department has procured from (a) Protec plc., (b) Xcell Misting Limited and (c) Cleanwright Limited in the last five years.

Jeremy Wright: The Ministry of Justice (MoJ) has not procured fire protection units directly from Xcell Misting Ltd or Cleanwright Ltd in the last five years. The MoJ has procured works from Protec under its Fire and General Alarm Framework in its capacity as a Prime Contractor responsible for the total scope of in cell Fire detection equipment and Alarms Systems throughout the MoJ Estate. These works included the installation of the six fixed hose reel misting units as part of the recent ‘Replace Fire and General Alarms' scheme at HMP Belmarsh.

Fire Prevention

George Freeman: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice whether his Department has received notification from Fireworks Limited that fire safety equipment procured by his Department infringes an existing patent.

Jeremy Wright: On 3 August 2012, Derek Killaspy, managing director of Fireworks Fire Protection, wrote to the Ministry of Justice advising that he believed that modular fire hose equipment procured by the Department for HMP Belmarsh infringed a patent filed by Watermist on one of their products.
	As a consequence, the Ministry of Justice has arranged for the registered patent holder to inspect the fire protection units which have been installed at HMP Belmarsh.

G4S

Bob Russell: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice whether G4S is involved in any contracts at the courts in Colchester.

Jeremy Wright: Ministry of Justice Procurement Directorate can confirm G4S is not involved in any contracts specifically for courts in Colchester.
	G4S is a contracted provider for other business areas of the MOJ and for the prisoner escort services in Scotland. On occasion it may be required to deliver prisoners to the courts in Colchester from other areas of the country.

Offenders: Suicide

Steve Rotheram: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many (a) suicides and (b) attempted suicides there have been in (i) prisons, (ii) bail hostels and (iii) approved premises in each probation service since May 2005.

Jeremy Wright: The information requested is as follows:
	(i) The National Offender Management Service publishes information on self-inflicted deaths and self-harm incidents in prisons. These cover a wider range of incidents than suicides and attempted suicides that require knowledge of intent.
	Between 1 May 2005 and 31 March 2012, there were a total of 472 self-inflicted deaths and 169,074 self-harm incidents in prison custody.
	(ii) The term ‘bail hostels’ is not an official term used by the National Offender Management Service. The term is commonly used to refer to approved premises but bail provision also incorporates a new type of bail accommodation which is not hostel provision used from June 2007 under the BASS (Accommodation and Support Services for Bail and Home Detention Curfew) scheme.
	Between 1 June 2007 and 31 March 2012 there have 10 drug-related deaths of BASS accommodation service users. Inquest verdicts are not available centrally so we cannot confirm which of these were suicide.
	Self-harm incidents in the community are often covert. Although there are systems in place for monitoring incidents in BASS accommodation, we do not have accurate numbers of self-harm incidents by BASS service users.
	(iii) The number of suicides in approved premises between 1 May 2005 and 31 March 2012 are shown in the following table:
	
		
			 Probation trust Number of suicides 
			 Avon and Somerset 2 
			 Bedfordshire 0 
			 Cambridgeshire and Peterborough 0 
			 Cheshire 2 
		
	
	
		
			 Cumbria 1 
			 Derbyshire 0 
			 Devon and Cornwall 0 
			 Dorset 0 
			 Essex 0 
			 Gloucestershire 0 
			 Greater Manchester 5 
			 Hampshire 0 
			 Humberside 1 
			 Kent 0 
			 Lancashire 0 
			 Leicestershire and Rutland 0 
			 Lincolnshire 0 
			 London 3 
			 Mersey side 1 
			 Norfolk (now merged with Suffolk) 0 
			 Norfolk and Suffolk (post-merger) 0 
			 Northamptonshire 0 
			 Northumbria 1 
			 North Wales (now merged into Wales) 0 
			 Nottinghamshire 0 
			 South Wales (now merged into Wales) 0 
			 South Yorkshire 0 
			 Staffordshire (now merged with West Midlands) 0 
			 Staffordshire West Midlands (post-merger) 2 
			 Suffolk (now merged with Norfolk) 0 
			 Surrey (now merged with Sussex) 0 
			 Sussex (now merged with Surrey) 1 
			 Surrey and Sussex (post-merger) 0 
			 Durham Tees Valley 0 
			 Thames Valley 0 
			 Wales (post-merger) 1 
			 Warwickshire 0 
			 West Mercia 0 
			 West Midlands (now merged with Staffordshire) 2 
			 West Yorkshire 0 
		
	
	The NOMS incident reporting system does not cover incidents in approved premises. The number of suicide attempts/self-harm incidents can be obtained only at disproportionate cost.

Prisoners: Foreign Nationals

Gareth Johnson: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice 
	(1)  how many people are currently held in prisons in Kent;
	(2)  how many (a) EU and (b) non-EU foreign nationals are currently serving custodial sentences in (i) Kent and (ii) the UK; and what the cost to the public purse is of maintaining those prisoners;
	(3)  how many foreign nationals are currently held in prisons in (a) Kent and (b) the UK; and what the cost to the public purse is of maintaining those prisoners.

Jeremy Wright: As at 30 June 2012, the number of prisoners in Kent prison establishments was 4,833.
	The following table provides relevant information on the current foreign national prison population in Kent prison establishments.
	The cost of foreign national prisoners is not separately calculated.
	The latest available estimated average annual overall cost per prisoner in England and Wales for the financial year 2010-11 is £37,000 (to nearest £1,000).
	These figures have been drawn from administrative IT systems which, as with any large scale recording system, are subject to possible errors with data entry and processing.
	
		
			 Foreign national prison population for Kent establishments(1) and England and Wales, 30 June 2012 
			  EU national prisoners Non EU national prisoners Total foreign national prisoners 
			  Sentenced(2) Non-sentenced Total Sentenced(2) Non-sentenced Total Sentenced(2) Non-sentenced Total 
			 Kent 301 42 343 569 327 896 870 369 1,239 
			 England and Wales 2,808 1,000 3,808 4,886 2,167 7,053 7,694 3,167 10,861 
			 (1) Includes the following establishments: Blantyre House, Canterbury, Cookham Wood, Dover IRC, East Sutton Park, Elmley, Maidstone, Rochester, Stanford Hill and Swaleside. (2) Includes immediate custody, fine defaulters and recalls.

Prisons and Probation Ombudsman

David Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what research his Department (a) has undertaken, (b) plans to undertake and (c) has evaluated on (i) complaints made to the Prisons and Probation Ombudsman (PPO) that have been upheld since the establishment of the PPO and (ii) the number of complaints that have been referred to the PPO in each probation area in England since the PPO was established; and if he will make a statement.

Jeremy Wright: The National Offender Management Service carried out pilot studies on specific areas of complaints made to the Prisons and Probation Ombudsman in 2011 and 2012 while developing a new complaints system for prisoners. There are no current plans by the Department or the National Offender Management Service to undertake any further research.
	The Prison and Probation Ombudsman takes the key role in research. The Ombudsman has published 15 research reports into various aspects of his role including the investigation of complaints. Copies of all these reports are available on the Ombudsman’s website:
	www.ppo.gov.uk
	The most recent report on complaints was “Learning from PPO Investigations: Overview of Complaints” (published in May 2011).
	Since taking up post in September 2011 the current Ombudsman has made it clear that he intends to increase his office’s emphasis on identifying lessons from investigations.

Prisons and Probation Ombudsman

David Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what the maximum disciplinary sanction is which the Prisons and Probation Ombudsman (PPO) may impose; on how many occasions the PPO has imposed that maximum sanction since May 2012; and if he will make a statement.

Jeremy Wright: The Prisons and Probation Ombudsman does not impose disciplinary sanctions. Where a complaint is upheld wholly or partially, the Ombudsman will either seek to mediate a settlement or will make recommendations for action to the appropriate authorities. In 2011-12 the Ombudsman upheld 23% of eligible complaints in whole or in part.

Prisons and Probation Ombudsman

David Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what funding he plans to provide to the Prisons and Probation Ombudsman (PPO) in each of the next three years; what discussions he has had with the PPO on its future funding since May 2010; and if he will make a statement.

Jeremy Wright: A budgetary allocation will be settled with the Ombudsman that will enable the Ombudsman to deliver his functions but drive down any inefficiencies. The funding for the Prisons and Prison and Probation Ombudsman for the next financial year (2013-14) is currently being agreed. Officials from the Ministry of Justice fully discuss funding before budgets are allocated for each upcoming financial year. The Prisons and Probation Ombudsman also discussed the pressures on resources with the previous Secretary of State for Justice, my right hon. and learned Friend the Member for Rushcliffe (Mr Clarke), in May 2012.

Prisons and Probation Ombudsman

David Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what the average cost to the Prisons and Probation Ombudsman was of dealing with a complaint in the last 12 months; and if he will make a statement.

Jeremy Wright: Complaints to the Prisons and Probation Ombudsman vary in cost depending on the complexity of the complaints. The average cost for assessing whether or not a complaint was eligible for investigation was £73 in 2011-12 (compared with £87 in 2010-11 and £105 in 2009-10). The average cost of investigating a complaint was £812 in 2011-12 (compared with £830 in 2010-11 and £1,091 in 2009-10).

Prisons and Probation Ombudsman

David Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what recent representations he has received on the work of the Prisons and Probation Ombudsman; and if he will make a statement.

Jeremy Wright: The Secretary of State occasionally receives letters from Members of Parliament on behalf of their constituents who are themselves, or whose family are involved in investigations carried out by the Prisons and Probation Ombudsman.

Prisons and Probation Ombudsman

David Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how much was awarded in compensation to complainants whose complaints were upheld by the Prisons and Probation Ombudsman in each year since 2010; how much was awarded in each such case; what guidance his Department has issued on the level of compensation to be awarded; and if he will make a statement.

Jeremy Wright: The Prisons and Probation Ombudsman does not award compensation to complainants but can recommend that the service in remit pays the complainant a suitable sum of compensation for loss or damage to property. Where compensation is recommended, the Ombudsman's aim is to return the complainant to the position he or she would have been in if the loss or damage had not occurred.
	In 2010-11 the Ombudsman recommended that compensation be paid in 17 cases. The sums ranged from £15 to £433, with the average being £128. In 2011-12 the Ombudsman recommended that compensation be paid in 23 cases. The sums ranged from £5 to £1,500, with the average being £144.
	Following an investigation by the Ombudsman, some complainants may go on to seek damages for personal injury through the courts.
	The Department does not issue guidance on the level of compensation for either loss of property or damages in civil litigation arising from a complaint investigated by the Ombudsman. Each case is considered on its own merits so general guidance would not be appropriate.

Prisons and Probation Ombudsman: Freedom of Information

David Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many requests for information under the Freedom of Information Act 2000 the Prisons and Probation Ombudsman has received since 2010; how many such requests were (a) agreed to and (b) refused in each such year; how many refusals were subject to appeal to the Information Commissioner in each such year; how many such appeals were successful; if he will place in the Library copies of the material subsequently provided in each case; and if he will make a statement.

Jeremy Wright: The information requested is as follows:
	
		
			  Total number of requests(1) Cases where one or more exemptions under the Freedom of Information Act 2000 applied 
			 2010 3 1 
			 2011 7 1 
			 2012 (to 31 August) 10 3 
			 (1) Multiple requests from the same individual for the same information are recorded as one request. 
		
	
	One case was the subject of an unsuccessful appeal to the Information Commissioner.

Sexual Offences: Approved Premises

Sadiq Khan: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice 
	(1)  whether he has any plans to review the guidelines relating to proximity required between approved premises which accommodate sex offenders and schools, nurseries and playgrounds;
	(2)  which approved premises host sex offenders and are within a quarter of a mile of a primary school.

Jeremy Wright: Approved premises provide for enhanced supervision of certain high risk of harm offenders, particularly on release from custody, which allows them to be supervised far more closely than if they were housed in less suitable accommodation elsewhere in the community.
	Under national policy, child sex offenders are excluded from approved premises that are directly adjacent to a school or a nursery. There are 14 approved premises covered by the national policy which exclude child sex offenders. All approved premises, including these 14, are able to house adult sex offenders (that is, those whose sexual offences are against adults). The policy was agreed to strengthen public confidence in the systems in place to protect the public from known child sex offenders. However, there is no evidence that accommodating sex offenders in approved premises near to schools, nurseries or playgrounds increases the risk to their users. Therefore, we have no plans to review the policy. Admissions to any approved premises are based on an assessment of risk in the individual case, and an offender will not be accommodated in a particular location if the risk cannot be effectively managed in the approved premises concerned.
	Details of all the schools, nurseries and playgrounds located within a specific radius of an approved premises are not held centrally. The information requested could be provided only through a detailed search of the geographical area of each approved premises and so could be provided only at disproportionate cost.

Sexual Offences: Approved Premises

Sadiq Khan: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice 
	(1)  whether he has considered the request from Sandbach Town Council to add Linden Bank in Elworth, Cheshire, to the list of approved premises not permitted to accommodate sex offenders;
	(2)  whether he has considered the request from Sandbach Town Council to close Linden Bank approved premises in Elworth, Cheshire; and if he will make a statement.

Jeremy Wright: I am afraid my office has no record of receiving any correspondence from Sandbach Town Council.
	The Government do not intend to close the approved premises in question, or to bar it from accepting child sex offenders. This is because approved premises are a vital resource in the management of high-risk offenders on release from custody. Without them, the management of these offenders would be less effective and risk to the public would be greater. Approved premises which are directly adjacent to a school or nursery are barred from accepting child sex offenders. Linden Bank approved premises is not in that category.

ENERGY AND CLIMATE CHANGE

Carbon Emissions: Agriculture

John Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change if he will estimate annual carbon emissions caused by tillage farming methods.

Richard Benyon: I have been asked to reply 
	on behalf of the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs.
	We do not currently have national estimates of annual carbon emissions due to tillage practices. However, research is currently being put in place that will provide estimates of emissions occurring as a result of a range of farm management practices including tillage. This will be completed in 2014.

HEALTH

Alcoholic Drinks: Misuse

Diane Abbott: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many people were admitted to hospital with suspected alcohol-related conditions of each (a) age and (b) gender in each region in each of the last five years.

Daniel Poulter: The following tables contains estimates of the number of admissions involving a mention of an alcohol-related condition as a primary or secondary diagnosis, split by age, gender and strategic health authority for the years 2006-07 to 2010-11.
	The figures include estimates based on other admissions for conditions partially attributable to alcohol, as well as counts of admissions with a condition wholly attributable to alcohol. The former are calculated using evidence about the proportion of diseases and injuries attributable to alcohol.
	The data in the tables should not be described as a count of people as the same person may have been admitted on more than one occasion.
	The attributable fractions are not applicable to children under 16. Therefore figures for this age group relate only to wholly-attributable admissions.
	
		
			 Estimated number of admissions with a condition i) wholly attributable and ii) other admissions with a condition partially attributable to alcohol split by age, gender and SHA of residence for the years 2006-07 to 2010-11 
			 Activity in English NHS Hospitals and English NHS commissioned activity in the independent sector—2010-11 
			   East Midlands Strategic Health Authority East of England Strategic Health Authority London Strategic Health Authority North East Strategic Health Authority 
			   Q33 Q35 Q36 Q30 
			   Male Female Male Female Male Female Male Female 
			 Wholly attributable admissions 0-9 5 3 2 2 7 5 2 1 
			  10-19 437 416 383 417 461 592 500 467 
			  20-29 1,630 942 1,283 750 2,009 1,202 2,007 994 
			  30-39 2,566 1,304 2,013 1,170 4,093 1,761 2,510 1,358 
			  40-49 3,818 1,750 3,308 1,740 6,452 2,562 3,411 1,809 
			  50-59 2,965 1,438 3,059 1,271 6,060 1,922 3,151 1,431 
			  60-69 2,216 753 2,548 931 4,458 1,069 2,135 684 
			  70-79 862 353 1,014 397 2,177 568 942 268 
			  80 and over 261 136 354 175 627 306 224 129 
			           
			 Partially attributable admissions 0-9 — — — — — — — — 
			  10-19 560 697 570 629 780 762 397 435 
			  20-29 1,491 1,708 1,385 1,639 2,394 2,605 1,109 1,228 
			  30-39 1,627 1,871 1,734 1,970 3,144 3,283 1,219 1,301 
			  40-49 3,745 2,908 4,342 3,417 6,685 5,071 2,854 2,279 
			  50-59 7,179 4,176 8,576 4,891 11,795 6,479 5,909 3,461 
			  60-69 11,741 5,821 15,339 7,487 15,110 7,606 9,204 4,596 
			  70-79 11,442 5,998 16,085 8,048 15,879 8,180 9,119 4,936 
			  80 and over 8,483 7,015 12,673 9,899 11,615 9,590 5,824 5,015 
		
	
	
		
			 Activity in English NHS Hospitals and English NHS commissioned activity in the independent sector—2010-11 
			   North West Strategic Health Authority South Central Strategic Health Authority South East Coast Strategic Health Authority South West Strategic Health Authority 
			   Q31 Q38 Q37 Q39 
			   Male Female Male Female Male Female Male Female 
			 Wholly attributable admissions 0-9 11 11 2 4 — 5 2 2 
			  10-19 1,149 1,316 281 385 440 438 634 615 
			  20-29 3,863 2,120 1,013 675 1,141 686 1,808 1,120 
			  30-39 6,449 3,845 1,556 804 1,678 976 2,619 1,264 
			  40-49 10,798 5,281 2,324 1,199 2,759 1,492 4,099 2,192 
		
	
	
		
			  50-59 8,905 3,833 2,002 923 2,497 1,145 3,647 1,654 
			  60-69 5,986 2,289 1,714 615 2,051 668 3,330 1,017 
			  70-79 2,471 904 714 249 804 302 1,340 509 
			  80 and over 664 363 240 188 322 177 467 223 
			           
			 Partially attributable admissions 0-9 — — — — — — — — 
			  10-19 1,059 1,123 384 448 421 536 627 712 
			  20-29 2,799 3,315 999 1,145 1,043 1,272 1,481 1,720 
			  30-39 3,120 3,275 1,129 1,232 1,257 1,484 1,723 1,787 
			  40-49 7,195 5,027 2,551 1,879 3,116 2,382 4,039 3,290 
			  50-59 13,279 7,385 4,632 2,619 6,081 3,169 7,671 4,648 
			  60-69 20,869 10,319 7,370 3,626 10,421 4,936 14,494 7,054 
			  70-79 20,318 11,081 7,609 3,912 10,960 5,672 14,703 7,504 
			  80 and over 13,441 11,625 6,146 5,197 9,445 8,058 11,972 9,819 
		
	
	
		
			 Activity in English NHS Hospitals and English NHS commissioned activity in the independent sector—2010-11 
			   West Midlands Strategic Health Authority Yorkshire and the Humber Strategic Health Authority England—not otherwise specified Unknown 
			   Q34 Q32 U Y 
			   Male Female Male Female Male Female Male Female 
			 Wholly attributable admissions 0-9 5 7 6 2 — — 2 — 
			  10-19 635 607 710 603 44 18 66 44 
			  20-29 1,903 974 2,337 1,351 407 99 415 110 
			  30-39 3,388 1,527 3,752 1,875 951 129 572 111 
			  40-49 5,208 2,284 5,344 2,501 1,117 112 685 117 
			  50-59 4,213 1,721 4,349 1,830 582 112 395 89 
			  60-69 3,332 1,025 3,010 1,099 196 11 166 36 
			  70-79 1,251 362 1,174 485 50 — 50 20 
			  80 and over 416 184 369 177 61 16 90 14 
			           
			 Partially attributable admissions 0-9 — — — — — — — — 
			  10-19 664 877 703 747 20 19 22 25 
			  20-29 1,721 2,090 1,806 2,060 97 25 112 55 
			  30-39 2,047 2,342 2,047 2,257 103 25 94 50 
			  40-49 4,646 3,902 4,574 3,524 95 20 132 51 
			  50-59 8,637 5,460 8,356 4,992 51 17 143 68 
			  60-69 14,355 7,487 13,303 6,759 27 10 178 78 
			  70-79 14,361 7,618 13,340 7,172 25 6 183 120 
			  80 and over 10,198 8,662 9,401 8,043 28 17 215 193 
		
	
	
		
			 Activity in English NHS Hospitals and English NHS commissioned activity in the independent sector—2009-10 
			   East Midlands Strategic Health Authority East of England Strategic Health Authority London Strategic Health Authority North East Strategic Health Authority 
			   Q33 Q35 Q36 Q30 
			   Male Female Male Female Male Female Male Female 
			 Wholly attributable admissions 0-9 4 3 2 2 5 2 2 1 
			  10-19 502 429 387 348 511 507 558 550 
		
	
	
		
			  20-29 1,555 841 1,166 738 1,913 957 1,876 930 
			  30-39 2,454 1,247 1,954 1,052 3,741 1,657 2,681 1,304 
			  40-49 3,904 1,735 3,163 1,489 5,895 2,227 3,201 1,678 
			  50-59 2,834 1,308 2,787 1,243 5,104 1,806 2,910 1,300 
			  60-69 1,954 704 2,092 718 3,853 965 1,824 634 
			  70-79 714 303 908 291 1,848 498 758 244 
			  80 and over 237 114 348 158 485 270 170 119 
			           
			 Partially attributable admissions 0-9 — — — — — — — — 
			  10-19 625 661 500 533 733 735 414 413 
			  20-29 1,405 1,648 1,332 1,521 2,292 2,444 1,067 1,057 
			  30-39 1,673 1,819 1,731 1,839 2,947 3,044 1,170 1,174 
			  40-49 3,576 2,767 4,196 3,017 5,976 4,275 2,618 2,097 
			  50-59 6,576 3,857 7,631 4,475 10,005 5,428 5,238 3,118 
			  60-69 10,741 5,243 13,218 6,503 12,731 6,538 8,263 4,067 
			  70-79 10,499 5,458 14,284 7,163 13,516 7,119 8,168 4,478 
			  80 and over 7,752 6,360 10,934 8,705 9,672 8,242 5,079 4,415 
		
	
	
		
			 Activity in English NHS Hospitals and English NHS commissioned activity in the independent sector—2009-10 
			   North West Strategic Health Authority South Central Strategic Health Authority South East Coast Strategic Health Authority South West Strategic Health Authority 
			   Q31 Q38 Q37 Q39 
			   Male Female Male Female Male Female Male Female 
			 Wholly attributable admissions 0-9 13 17 2 1 4 3 4 3 
			  10-19 1,232 1,326 331 400 408 529 650 633 
			  20-29 3,677 2,071 855 537 1,147 756 1,771 968 
			  30-39 6,440 3,492 1,525 764 1,675 896 2,653 1,239 
			  40-49 10,226 4,943 2,028 1,155 2,683 1,475 3,764 1,941 
			  50-59 8,274 3,517 1,909 825 2,221 994 3,372 1,425 
			  60-69 5,490 1,993 1,498 471 1,756 575 2,868 826 
			  70-79 2,299 831 608 258 805 312 1,176 513 
			  80 and over 607 298 196 126 270 148 412 219 
			           
			 Partially attributable admissions 0-9 — — — — — — — — 
			  10-19 1,085 1,127 396 435 495 487 652 713 
			  20-29 2,729 3,150 978 991 1,042 1,222 1,443 1,564 
			  30-39 3,099 3,295 1,091 1,142 1,256 1,392 1,584 1,736 
			  40-49 6,754 4,702 2,364 1,687 2,861 2,164 3,609 2,990 
			  50-59 12,609 6,772 4,085 2,312 5,251 2,867 6,997 4,170 
			  60-69 19,181 9,536 6,526 3,181 9,083 4,276 12,614 6,019 
			  70-79 18,900 10,279 6,765 3,558 9,639 5,079 13,187 6,778 
			  80 and over 12,066 10,743 5,351 4,807 8,155 7,046 10,399 9,047 
		
	
	
		
			 Activity in English NHS Hospitals and English NHS commissioned activity in the independent sector—2009-10 
			   West Midlands Strategic Health Authority Yorkshire and the Humber Strategic Health Authority England—not otherwise specified Unknown 
			   Q34 Q32 U Y 
			   Male Female Male Female Male Female Male Female 
			 Wholly attributable admissions 0-9 8 8 9 6 1 1 — — 
			  10-19 663 606 645 633 56 21 72 59 
			  20-29 1,918 953 2,066 1,032 402 86 406 110 
			  30-39 3,119 1,393 3,449 1,690 1,003 131 637 144 
			  40-49 5,087 2,109 4,793 2,086 1,162 98 897 135 
			  50-59 3,922 1,514 3,822 1,467 567 80 415 84 
			  60-69 2,935 944 2,552 802 221 13 187 22 
			  70-79 1,019 365 1,012 343 26 2 41 6 
			  80 and over 384 191 275 130 76 10 104 20 
			           
			 Partially attributable admissions 0-9 — — — — — — — — 
			  10-19 665 733 724 772 23 10 37 22 
			  20-29 1,714 1,967 1,803 1,997 89 26 119 59 
			  30-39 2,037 2,231 1,954 2,122 99 22 127 53 
			  40-49 4,289 3,584 4,052 3,303 93 14 137 57 
			  50-59 8,041 4,999 7,361 4,336 45 9 162 63 
			  60-69 12,914 6,844 11,521 5,863 27 6 157 68 
			  70-79 12,932 6,975 11,529 6,363 20 7 138 77 
			  80 and over 8,738 7,702 8,116 7,161 28 18 118 160 
		
	
	
		
			 Activity in English NHS Hospitals and English NHS commissioned activity in the independent sector—2008-09 
			   East Midlands Strategic Health Authority East of England Strategic Health Authority London Strategic Health Authority North East Strategic Health Authority 
			   Q33 Q35 Q36 Q30 
			   Male Female Male Female Male Female Male Female 
			 Wholly attributable admissions 0-9 2 4 2 2 8 3 6 4 
			  10-19 473 465 390 340 428 497 539 514 
			  20-29 1,329 864 1,096 628 1,616 919 1,924 937 
			  30-39 2,401 1,134 1,712 999 3,445 1,335 2,298 1,257 
			  40-49 3,410 1,610 2,739 1,380 5,177 1,828 2,941 1,405 
			  50-59 2,520 1,098 2,355 968 4,730 1,427 2,650 1,173 
			  60-69 1,703 585 1,920 655 3,311 825 1,631 526 
			  70-79 764 242 733 283 1,491 431 682 267 
			  80 and over 256 130 260 121 421 247 157 81 
			           
			 Partially attributable admissions 0-9 — — — — — — — — 
			  10-19 589 681 510 538 640 684 451 387 
			  20-29 1,336 1,605 1,251 1,340 2,089 2,238 1,074 1,035 
			  30-39 1,563 1,740 1,595 1,617 2,650 2,780 1,174 1,128 
			  40-49 3,167 2,593 3,468 2,632 5,205 3,709 2,499 1,966 
			  50-59 5,971 3,484 6,877 3,795 8,660 4,644 4,947 2,934 
			  60-69 9,572 4,798 11,274 5,402 11,201 5,601 7,340 3,883 
			  70-79 9,394 4,799 12,141 6,045 11,502 5,964 7,498 4,110 
			  80 and over 6,754 5,699 9,068 7,504 8,148 7,185 4,555 3,990 
		
	
	
		
			 Activity in English NHS Hospitals and English NHS commissioned activity in the independent sector—2008-09 
			   North West Strategic Health Authority South Central Strategic Health Authority South East Coast Strategic Health Authority South West Strategic Health Authority 
			   Q31 Q38 Q37 Q39 
			   Male Female Male Female Male Female Male Female 
			 Wholly attributable admissions 0-9 10 12 6 8 6 4 5 3 
			  10-19 1,206 1,304 299 423 442 465 585 635 
			  20-29 3,387 1,875 791 443 1,057 654 1,678 855 
			  30-39 5,879 3,134 1,390 685 1,686 858 2,350 1,177 
			  40-49 9,122 4,319 1,738 973 2,485 1,367 3,536 1,888 
			  50-59 7,107 3,043 1,838 735 2,003 909 3,086 1,246 
			  60-69 4,758 1,669 1,232 478 1,600 515 2,312 850 
			  70-79 2,047 651 555 231 741 260 1,066 469 
			  80 and over 524 244 205 94 238 174 353 217 
			           
			 Partially attributable admissions 0-9 — — — — — — — — 
			  10-19 1,104 980 413 428 461 479 612 686 
			  20-29 2,723 2,881 956 984 1,016 1,095 1,487 1,440 
			  30-39 3,172 3,006 1,098 1,042 1,225 1,352 1,587 1,754 
			  40-49 6,291 4,088 2,164 1,531 2,678 1,940 3,280 2,694 
			  50-59 11,262 6,109 3,707 2,091 4,825 2,682 6,301 3,971 
			  60-69 16,749 8,488 5,809 2,874 8,025 3,842 11,310 5,586 
			  70-79 16,626 9,169 6,044 3,209 8,751 4,522 11,822 6,214 
			  80 and over 10,313 9,638 4,610 4,078 7,188 6,393 9,210 8,223 
		
	
	
		
			 Activity in English NHS Hospitals and English NHS commissioned activity in the independent sector—2008-09 
			   West Midlands Strategic Health Authority Yorkshire and the Humber Strategic Health Authority England —not otherwise specified Unknown 
			   Q34 Q32 U Y 
			   Male Female Male Female Male Female Male Female 
			 Wholly attributable admissions 0-9 8 5 8 3 1 — 3 — 
			  10-19 580 623 616 623 65 24 93 70 
			  20-29 1,735 856 1,892 975 360 97 386 96 
			  30-39 3,031 1,292 3,004 1,514 968 139 597 170 
			  40-49 4,598 1,918 4,112 1,822 1,159 98 854 142 
			  50-59 3,499 1,351 3,105 1,268 600 47 460 76 
			  60-69 2,427 791 2,086 669 147 6 179 35 
			  70-79 1,031 347 827 309 39 17 57 14 
			  80 and over 302 151 252 105 77 17 78 20 
			           
			 Partially attributable admissions 0-9 — — — — — — — — 
			  10-19 678 671 720 736 22 21 36 33 
			  20-29 1,611 1,941 1,813 1,883 116 38 125 73 
			  30-39 1,913 2,151 1,840 1,960 131 28 129 70 
			  40-49 3,987 3,338 3,597 2,849 132 13 160 55 
			  50-59 7,687 4,838 6,345 3,845 66 18 144 57 
			  60-69 12,308 6,324 9,541 4,959 49 16 133 65 
			  70-79 11,907 6,278 9,860 5,464 27 10 133 74 
			  80 and over 7,594 6,792 6,736 6,054 27 18 148 302 
		
	
	
		
			 Activity in English NHS Hospitals and English NHS commissioned activity in the independent sector—2007-08 
			   East Midlands Strategic Health Authority East of England Strategic Health Authority London Strategic Health Authority North East Strategic Health Authority 
			   Q33 Q35 Q36 Q30 
			   Male Female Male Female Male Female Male Female 
			 Wholly attributable admissions 0-9 4 5 3 6 11 3 13 4 
			  10-19 537 559 432 434 479 591 566 613 
			  20-29 1,335 827 1,013 533 1,545 891 1,553 858 
			  30-39 2,251 1,053 1,640 890 3,348 1,253 2,086 1,176 
			  40-49 3,029 1,475 2,677 1,281 5,126 1,876 2,816 1,379 
			  50-59 2,239 1,046 2,252 943 4,608 1,364 2,333 1,108 
			  60-69 1,451 568 1,632 695 3,095 782 1,420 466 
			  70-79 613 265 676 270 1,276 366 602 228 
			  80 and over 182 82 204 123 424 173 153 69 
			           
			 Partially attributable admissions 0-9 — — — — — — — — 
			  10-19 562 608 551 533 744 677 461 437 
			  20-29 1,338 1,486 1,212 1,301 2,150 2,141 1,033 995 
			  30-39 1,553 1,768 1,552 1,671 2,587 2,640 1,071 1,086 
			  40-49 2,916 2,401 3,401 2,455 4,949 3,356 2,299 1,753 
			  50-59 5,391 3,197 6,437 3,513 7,666 4,193 4,357 2,552 
			  60-69 8,385 4,220 10,336 5,000 9,979 4,865 6,492 3,341 
			  70-79 8,379 4,417 10,930 5,626 10,275 5,432 6,431 3,594 
			  80 and over 5,825 4,965 7,832 6,677 6,934 6,302 3,895 3,525 
		
	
	
		
			 Activity in English NHS Hospitals and English NHS commissioned activity in the independent sector—2007-08 
			   North West Strategic Health Authority South Central Strategic Health Authority South East Coast Strategic Health Authority South West Strategic Health Authority 
			   Q31 Q38 Q37 Q39 
			   Male Female Male Female Male Female Male Female 
			 Wholly attributable admissions 0-9 12 8 6 2 6 1 5 11 
			  10-19 1,346 1,547 385 442 511 523 622 689 
			  20-29 3,539 1,797 792 532 1,066 618 1,352 731 
			  30-39 5,793 3,062 1,289 646 1,620 882 2,071 1,113 
			  40-49 8,647 4,025 1,665 1,005 2,254 1,260 3,053 1,651 
			  50-59 6,627 3,044 1,724 654 1,965 854 3,003 1,160 
			  60-69 4,296 1,557 1,081 419 1,516 454 2,124 764 
			  70-79 1,825 597 548 197 690 247 873 378 
			  80 and over 411 231 155 85 210 133 296 164 
			           
			 Partially attributable admissions 0-9 — — — — — — — — 
			  10-19 1,193 1,108 382 436 480 418 650 632 
			  20-29 2,606 2,889 920 931 1,071 992 1,345 1,367 
			  30-39 3,148 3,041 1,054 1,075 1,211 1,346 1,495 1,676 
			  40-49 5,725 3,804 2,015 1,562 2,546 1,763 3,076 2,530 
			  50-59 10,380 5,700 3,607 1,940 4,595 2,533 6,085 3,613 
			  60-69 15,067 7,550 5,098 2,554 7,321 3,452 10,038 4,935 
			  70-79 14,608 8,214 5,187 2,746 7,807 4,058 10,450 5,498 
			  80 and over 8,887 8,555 3,657 3,390 6,128 5,612 7,856 7,081 
		
	
	
		
			 Activity in English NHS Hospitals and English NHS commissioned activity in the independent sector—2007-08 
			   West Midlands Strategic Health Authority Yorkshire and the Humber Strategic Health Authority England—not otherwise specified Unknown 
			   Q34 Q32 U Y 
			   Male Female Male Female Male Female Male Female 
			 Wholly attributable admissions 0-9 9 3 8 3  1 2 2 
			  10-19 613 741 628 648 60 27 115 84 
			  20-29 1,485 856 1,583 923 354 93 445 181 
			  30-39 2,710 1,033 2,725 1,344 909 138 732 184 
			  40-49 3,991 1,722 3,507 1,609 893 94 865 219 
			  50-59 3,156 1,116 2,881 1,118 545 63 496 123 
			  60-69 2,098 691 1,912 633 181 6 211 30 
			  70-79 763 266 768 253 21  66 20 
			  80 and over 242 118 231 94 50 3 110 21 
			           
			 Partially attributable admissions 0-9 — — — — — — — — 
			  10-19 710 712 718 755 17 19 65 57 
			  20-29 1,532 1,816 1,712 1,726 97 25 190 170 
			  30-39 1,903 2,028 1,806 1,982 124 26 217 140 
			  40-49 3,622 3,046 3,363 2,644 111 17 312 182 
			  50-59 6,769 4,239 5,900 3,597 68 10 431 210 
			  60-69 10,509 5,502 8,860 4,524 36 13 576 268 
			  70-79 10,153 5,395 8,800 5,008 24 15 524 286 
			  80 and over 6,314 5,716 5,780 5,459 20 16 356 448 
		
	
	
		
			 Activity in English NHS Hospitals and English NHS commissioned activity in the independent sector—2006-07 
			   East Midlands Strategic Health Authority East of England Strategic Health Authority London Strategic Health Authority North East Strategic Health Authority 
			   Q33 Q35 Q36 Q30 
			   Male Female Male Female Male Female Male Female 
			 Wholly attributable admissions 0-9 9 4 9 3 12 7 3 1 
			  10-19 497 443 380 391 444 516 597 557 
			  20-29 1,247 648 877 508 1,449 734 1,494 772 
			  30-39 2,112 904 1,656 856 3,238 1,218 2,014 1,068 
			  40-49 2,822 1,301 2,357 1,193 5,004 1,751 2,842 1,376 
			  50-59 2,438 890 2,186 863 4,608 1,245 2,263 963 
			  60-69 1,490 506 1,438 573 3,054 741 1,319 432 
			  70-79 625 216 645 246 1,256 352 598 169 
			  80 and over 187 77 201 111 389 162 140 68 
			           
			 Partially attributable admissions 0-9 — — — — — — — — 
			  10-19 532 530 591 489 705 614 469 483 
			  20-29 1,316 1,264 1,233 1,313 2,144 2,075 1,055 998 
			  30-39 1,506 1,644 1,613 1,607 2,612 2,711 1,143 1,077 
			  40-49 2,643 2,194 3,077 2,223 4,626 3,238 2,077 1,641 
			  50-59 5,290 2,924 6,032 3,480 7,317 4,071 3,983 2,401 
			  60-69 7,394 3,648 9,258 4,386 9,321 4,655 5,458 2,881 
			  70-79 7,675 4,013 10,023 5,192 9,278 4,993 5,607 3,201 
			  80 and over 5,031 4,434 6,933 6,063 6,259 5,728 3,318 3,254 
		
	
	
		
			 Activity in English NHS Hospitals and English NHS commissioned activity in the independent sector—2006-07 
			   North West Strategic Health Authority South Central Strategic Health Authority South East Coast Strategic Health Authority South West Strategic Health Authority 
			   Q31 Q38 Q37 Q39 
			   Male Female Male Female Male Female Male Female 
			 Wholly attributable admissions 0-9 14 15 4 2 3 5 4 4 
			  10-19 1,516 1,512 356 388 457 477 644 682 
			  20-29 3,135 1,689 693 425 1,007 560 1,368 747 
			  30-39 5,749 2,823 1,167 621 1,673 859 1,964 989 
			  40-49 8,178 3,812 1,646 845 2,059 1,171 3,000 1,496 
			  50-59 6,321 2,866 1,643 541 1,908 821 2,935 1,116 
			  60-69 4,038 1,284 954 351 1,259 415 2,162 681 
			  70-79 1,581 604 459 144 589 219 833 353 
			  80 and over 392 209 167 86 170 138 273 187 
			           
			 Partially attributable admissions 0-9 — — — — — — — — 
			  10-19 1,171 1,027 354 398 503 405 704 638 
			  20-29 2,706 2,830 865 861 1,022 954 1,369 1,346 
			  30-39 3,263 3,139 1,041 1,037 1,247 1,289 1,556 1,635 
			  40-49 5,440 3,745 1,734 1,336 2,283 1,658 2,974 2,412 
			  50-59 9,814 5,457 3,112 1,722 4,321 2,415 5,739 3,387 
			  60-69 13,479 6,962 4,131 2,070 6,370 3,102 9,308 4,458 
			  70-79 13,462 7,549 4,390 2,371 6,816 3,795 9,790 5,158 
			  80 and over 8,039 7,851 3,127 2,924 5,284 5,112 7,148 6,630 
		
	
	
		
			 Activity in English NHS Hospitals and English NHS commissioned activity in the independent sector—2006-07 
			   West Midlands Strategic Health Authority Yorkshire and the Humber Strategic Health Authority England—not otherwise specified Unknown 
			   Q34 Q32 U Y 
			   Male Female Male Female Male Female Male Female 
			 Wholly attributable admissions 0-9 4 11 9 3 3 1 3 2 
			  10-19 733 694 711 650 37 39 87 77 
			  20-29 1,453 688 1,528 791 296 75 408 118 
			  30-39 2,742 1,098 2,573 1,255 806 112 699 158 
			  40-49 3,958 1,602 3,330 1,477 836 86 752 136 
			  50-59 3,226 1,073 2,892 1,042 524 38 444 61 
			  60-69 1,935 608 1,587 533 147 6 184 25 
			  70-79 704 244 683 271 17 — 54 7 
			  80 and over 210 125 191 98 35 1 66 14 
			           
			 Partially attributable admissions 0-9 — — — — — — — — 
			  10-19 710 762 718 701 20 16 59 48 
			  20-29 1,668 1,799 1,680 1,696 84 28 169 154 
			  30-39 2,047 2,175 1,856 1,944 131 28 196 155 
			  40-49 3,678 2,891 3,215 2,418 105 16 200 79 
			  50-59 7,135 4,143 5,704 3,389 53 11 176 70 
			  60-69 9,927 5,004 8,032 4,132 30 5 165 81 
			  70-79 9,558 5,264 7,917 4,635 16 7 131 89 
		
	
	
		
			  80 and over 5,692 5,278 5,143 4,927 15 15 126 262 
			 Notes: 1. Alcohol-related admissions The number of alcohol-related admissions is based on the methodology developed by the North West Public Health Observatory, which uses 48 indicators for alcohol-related illnesses, determining the proportion of a wide range of diseases and injuries that can be partly attributed to alcohol as well as those that are, by definition, wholly attributable to alcohol. Further information on these proportions can be found at: www.nwph.net/nwpho/publications/AlcoholAttributableFractions.pdf The application of the NWPHO methodology has recently been updated and is now available directly from Hospital Episode Statistics (HES). As such, information about episodes estimated to be alcohol related may be slightly different from previously published data. Alcohol attributable fractions are not applicable to children under 16. Therefore figures for the age groups 0 to nine and 10 to 19 relate only to wholly-attributable admissions, where the attributable fraction is one. 2. SHA/PCT of residence SHA or primary care trust (PCT) containing the patient’s normal home address. This does not necessarily reflect where the patient was treated as they may have travelled to another SHA/PCT for treatment. 3. Assessing growth through time HES figures are available from 1989-90 onwards. Changes to the figures over time need to be interpreted in the context of improvements in data quality and coverage (particularly in earlier years), improvements in coverage of independent sector activity (particularly from 2006-07) and changes in NHS practice. For example, changes in activity may be due to changes in the provision of care. Source: Hospital Episode Statistics (HES), Health and Social Care Information Centre

Cancer: Drugs

Andrew Bridgen: To ask the Secretary of State for Health whether unspent funding in the 2011-12 cancer drugs fund budget for each strategic health authority was (a) carried over to the 2012-13 budget or (b) deducted from the amount assigned in advance for the 2012-13 budget.

Norman Lamb: The overall strategic health authority (SHA) and primary care trust (PCT) surplus reported for 2011-12 includes unspent funding allocated to the national health service for the Cancer Drugs Fund in 2011-12. As set out in the 2012-13 NHS Operating Framework, the aggregate 2011-12 SHA and PCT surplus is carried forward into 2012-13.
	The Government are committed to making £200 million available to the NHS for each of the three years of the Cancer Drugs Fund's operation and £200 million has been made available for the Cancer Drugs Fund in 2012-13. Funding for 2012-13 comprises £140 million allocated to SHAs and £60 million held by the Department for allocation in-year as required.

Care Homes: Regulation

Steve Rotheram: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many care homes were found to have committed a criminal offence of (a) failing to comply with statutory requirements or Care Quality Commission rules on staffing checks, (b) knowingly employing a person to work with adults in a care home who has been barred by the Independent Safeguarding Authority and (c) employing a person who is on the Sex Offenders Register in each of the last five years.

Norman Lamb: The Care Quality Commission (CQC) has advised that there have been no prosecutions of care home providers in relation to regulation 21 under the Health and Social Care Act and no prosecution carried out in relation to staffing checks by the CQC between 1 April 2009 and 1 October 2010. Information on prosecutions carried out by predecessor bodies is not held.
	The Independent Safeguarding Authority (ISA) does not receive or maintain data in relation to offences committed under the Safeguarding Vulnerable Groups Act 2006 including offences relating to the use of a barred person for regulated activity.
	If a barred person applies for an enhanced criminal records disclosure to work with a vulnerable group they are barred from, the Criminal Records Bureau will provide this information to the ISA. Upon verification of identity, the ISA will prepare an evidence pack and forward this to the Police for appropriate action. Any decision on prosecution would be a matter for the Police and the Crown Prosecution Service.
	Information relating to the employment of a person on the Sex Offenders Register is not collected centrally. The nature and severity of the sexual offence is revealed in a criminal record check and it is for care homes to act on the results of any disclosure. There is no criminal offence relating to employment unless the individual has been barred from working with certain groups. The notification requirements for registered sex offenders is separate and provides police with an effective tool for the management of offenders within the community.

Correspondence

Lyn Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the average time taken was by his Department to reply to correspondence from hon. Members and peers in the last 12 months; and for what proportion of letters the time taken to send a response was longer than (a) one month, (b) six weeks, (c) two months, (d) three months and (e) six months in that period.

Anna Soubry: The Department took an average of 12 working days to reply to correspondence received between 1 August 2011 and 31 July 2012 from hon. Members and peers. Within that period, the following table shows the proportion of correspondence where the time taken to respond was over one month, six weeks, two months, three months and six months.
	
		
			 Time taken to respond Proportion of correspondence (%) 
			 Over one month 0.4 
			 Over six weeks 0.09 
			 Over two months 0.04 
			 Over three months 0.01 
			 Over six months 0

Depressive Illnesses

Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  what the average age was for a first diagnosis of depression in (a) 1982, (b) 1992, (c) 2002 and (d) the latest year for which figures are available;
	(2)  what the average number of episodes for those suffering with depression was in the latest period for which figures are available.

Norman Lamb: Information on age of first diagnosis and number of episodes for those suffering from depression is not held centrally.

Diabetes

Keith Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) if he will take steps to ensure diabetes is a health priority for the EU during the Cyprus presidency;

Keith Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what follow-up work his Department is undertaking following the European Diabetes Leadership Forum in April 2012.

Norman Lamb: The Diabetes Roadmap was launched on 4 June 2012 as a follow up to the European Diabetes Leadership Forum (EDLF) that was held in Copenhagen earlier this year. In summary, the Copenhagen Roadmap presents the outcomes of the EDLF. The foundation of the Copenhagen Roadmap was developed by the Danish Diabetes Association and the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development and contributions were given by participants who attended the Forum, including contributions from the Department.
	To facilitate knowledge sharing and demonstrate how the Copenhagen Roadmap could be implemented, the EDLF introduced a Copenhagen Catalogue of Good Practices in Diabetes, which was published on 3 September 2012. The Department will continue to work with its colleagues in the private and voluntary sectors to support initiatives to improve prevention, detection and management of diabetes in England.
	We will continue to support our European colleagues in implementing the Copenhagen roadmap and will ensure that diabetes is high on the agenda during all future EU presidencies.

Diabetes

Keith Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what proportion of (a) type 1 and (b) type 2 diabetes patients eligible for insulin pumps received insulin pump education within four weeks of being prescribed one.

Norman Lamb: This information is not collected centrally.
	However, the Association of British Clinical Diabetologists, Diabetes UK and the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation with support from the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE), have sponsored a United Kingdom wide audit. The audit will collect data on the number of patients commencing insulin pumps, the type of diabetic commencing and the provision and delivery of structured, education programmes for diabetic patients commencing continuous subcutaneous insulin infusion therapy.
	The organisational level data collection was conducted in May 2012 and the patient level data collection will take place later in the year. NHS Diabetes will work to support organisations in delivering their services following the outcomes of these audits.

Diabetes

Ian Paisley Jnr: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps his Department is taking to reduce the number of avoidable deaths caused by diabetes.

Norman Lamb: We are working with the National Diabetes Information Service and NHS Diabetes to ensure that local services have the audit data from the audit for their own areas, to see how they compare to others and focus on where improvements can be made. The Department and NHS Diabetes have a suite of tools and materials that can be used to help drive improvements and reduce avoidable deaths.
	Three documents produced over the next several months will influence the commissioning and development of diabetes services and improve outcomes for people with diabetes: the diabetes action plan; the Long Term Conditions Outcomes strategy (to include a diabetes companion document); and the Cardiovascular Disease Outcomes strategy.

Diabetes

Ian Paisley Jnr: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps his Department is taking to reduce the number of undetected and undiagnosed individuals with diabetes.

Norman Lamb: It is important to identify people with diabetes early to ensure that they receive prompt treatment to manage their diabetes and to help delay or prevent long-term complications of the condition.
	The Department has initiatives in place to encourage healthy eating and promote an active lifestyle that raise awareness of Type 2 diabetes. Primary care trusts are running the NHS Health Check programme, which proactively identifies and manages people at risk of vascular disease including diabetes.
	Guidelines and an accompanying algorithm were published by NHS Diabetes and the Royal College of General Practitioners (RCGP) in 2011 to help GPs diagnose diabetes accurately for every patient.
	The National Institute of Health and Clinical Excellence has recently published two guidance documents on the prevention of Type 2 diabetes that providers and commissioners of health services should make reference to.

Diabetes

Ian Paisley Jnr: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what plans he has for a new national diabetes strategy to replace the National Framework for Diabetes when it expires in 2013.

Norman Lamb: The last review of the National Services Framework (NSF) was published in 2010 (‘Six years on: delivering the Diabetes National Service Framework’). There have been developments in the evidence for optimal care for people with diabetes since the publication of the NSF for Diabetes in 2001 and, with this in mind, further reviews will be dependent on other influences such as the Quality Standard for Diabetes (2011).
	Three documents produced over the next several months will influence the commissioning and development of diabetes services and improve outcomes for people with diabetes: the diabetes action plan; the Long Term Conditions Outcomes Strategy (to include a diabetes companion document); and the Cardiovascular Disease Outcomes strategy.

Diabetes

Ian Paisley Jnr: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will provide support for a programme to encourage the education of people in appropriate physical care and management, including exercise and lifestyle, for the purposes of preventing type 2 diabetes.

Norman Lamb: The Change4Life initiative, based on increasing exercise and promoting healthy eating, is aimed at the general population. Its premise and resources are wholly suited to those at risk of developing diabetes. Some providers of care may choose to advise some of those with diabetes to engage with this project. People identified as having diabetes or at risk of developing the condition via NHS Health Checks are referred onto the appropriate pathway that could include Change4Life or, if more appropriate, an intensive lifestyle-change programme as recommended by the latest National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence public health guidance entitled Prevention of type 2 Diabetes: risk identification and interventions for individuals at high risk.

Diabetes

Keith Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what discussions he has had with his EU counterparts on follow-up work under Cyprus's presidency of the EU on the Danish presidency's priority of tackling non-communicable diseases, including diabetes.

Norman Lamb: We are expecting the Presidency to bring forward a set of Council Conclusions in this field, which they are aiming to agree during December's meeting of Ministers for Employment, Social Policy, Health and Consumer affairs (EPSCO Council) after negotiations in Council working Groups. The Government have not yet seen a draft of the proposed Conclusions. The Cypriot presidency program gave the following details:
	“The issue of chronic diseases will be addressed by highlighting the essential role of disease prevention, early diagnosis and health promotion programmes in combination with innovative approaches in healthcare and by addressing main health determinants. In this context, the Presidency will seek to agree Council conclusions in order to emphasise healthy living throughout the lifecycle, leading to a healthy ageing process.”
	There have been no official announcements from the Cyprus EU presidency that they plan to continue with highlighting diabetes.

Drugs: Safety

Wayne David: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  what arrangements are in place to ensure that reported adverse reactions by patients to drugs are collated to ensure that early warning signs of dangerous side effects are identified; [R]
	(2)  what steps his Department is taking to ensure best practice is kept up-to-date when new information arises for the purposes of ensuring that unsafe drugs do not enter the market.

Anna Soubry: The Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) is the agency responsible for the safety and licensing of medicines.
	Reports of suspected adverse drug reactions (ADRs) are collected by the MHRA and Commission for Human Medicines (CHM) through a spontaneous reporting scheme, the Yellow Card Scheme. The scheme collects ADR reports from across the whole of the United Kingdom and includes all medicines and vaccines, including those from prescriptions, over-the-counter or general retail sales, and also reports for herbal and unlicensed medicines. Patients as well as health care professionals can report suspected adverse drug reactions directly to the MHRA using the Yellow Card website, paper forms or by telephone. The scheme relies on voluntary reports received from health care professionals and patients although there is a legal requirement for companies to report serious ADRs to their drugs to the MHRA.
	All ADR reports received by the MHRA are entered onto their database for rapid analysis and assessment. These reports are reviewed by a team of physicians, pharmacists and scientists using statistical tools in a process known as signal detection, in order to identify potential new safety concerns. When a potential drug safety hazard is identified, an assessment of the risks and benefits of the medicine is undertaken to determine what action, if any, is necessary.
	The Yellow Card Scheme contributes to the process of monitoring the safety of all medicines throughout their marketed life, known as pharmacovigilance, which works to identify previously unrecognised safety hazards. When a potential drug safety hazard is identified, an assessment of the risks and benefits of the medicine is undertaken to determine what action, if any, is necessary. The objective of regulatory action is to ensure that the benefits of a patient taking the medicine continue to outweigh risks.
	A number of options for communicating information on drug safety hazards to health care professionals and the public are available to the MHRA. New warnings about medicines, arising from pharmacovigilance activities, are published in Drug Safety Update, an electronic monthly bulletin for health care professionals issued by the MHRA, published on the MHRA website and emailed to approximately 170,000 health care professionals. Some articles relating to major regulatory actions such as a withdrawal/suspension of a medicine, or a serious side effect for a widely used or high-profile medicine or vaccine, are linked to an MHRA public assessment report (also published on the website) which summarises the scientific and clinical evidence for the safety issue in question.
	If information of particular clinical importance emerges, it is common practice that a ‘Dear health care professional’ letter is sent to relevant clinicians by the pharmaceutical company, consistent with MHRA advice. The letter outlines any new risk and advises on how the risk can be minimised and managed. Urgent messages are also cascaded to health professionals by the MHRA, using the web-based NHS Central Alerting System (CAS); this includes dissemination to some independent providers of health and social care. Warnings are also published on the MHRA website.
	These safety messages issued by the MHRA are taken up by external organisations which are responsible for issuing clinical guidance; MHRA works closely with such organisations to ensure that safety information is consistent and up to date. This includes, for example, the British National Formulary, which many clinicians use in practice for obtaining information on medicines, including their adverse effects. Health care professionals may also receive information from the Medicines and Prescribing Centre's Evidence Summaries, which provides a current awareness service by appraising new information and placing it in the context of other evidence.
	The MHRA's Defective Medicines Report Centre plays a major part in the protection of public health by minimising the hazard to patients arising from the distribution of defective medicinal products. It does this by providing an emergency assessment and communications system between suppliers of medicinal products, the regulatory authorities and health care professionals.

Health Professions: English Language

Andrew Stephenson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many complaints have been received about the standard of English of health professionals in each of the last three years.

Anna Soubry: This information is not collected centrally.

Health Professions: English Language

Andrew Stephenson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what assessment his Department has made of the level of English-language proficiency amongst locum doctors.

Daniel Poulter: Patient safety is paramount and all health care professionals working in the United Kingdom must observe the standards of professional competence, practice and ethics set by their professional regulatory body. It is the responsibility of employers to ensure that the health care professionals they employ are able to safely and effectively communicate with colleagues and patients.
	All non-European Economic Area health care professionals are required to demonstrate their knowledge of English before they are registered with the appropriate regulatory body.
	Under the European Directive 2005/36/EC on the recognition of professional qualifications it is not possible for the regulatory bodies to systematically test language competency of European Union migrants wishing to register in the UK. However, it does not preclude regulatory bodies from taking fitness to practise action against a registrant where their knowledge of English is poor.

Health Services: North West

Tim Farron: To ask the Secretary of State for Health whether he was informed of the decision to remove vascular services from the Morecambe Bay area; and if he will conduct a review to determine the effect of the decision on patient safety.

Anna Soubry: Vascular services are being reviewed locally across England in response to robust evidence, which shows that better patient outcomes are achieved when complex procedures, such as vascular surgery, are provided by units, which treat higher volumes of patients.
	The Cumbria and Lancashire Vascular Clinical Advisory Group reviewed vascular services in the region, including University Hospitals of Morecambe Bay NHS Foundation Trust. The group made recommendations, which were agreed by commissioners, on the location of vascular intervention centres, which will undertake vascular surgery. The majority of vascular services will continue to be provided in local hospitals.
	The Department has no plans to conduct a review of these local decisions.

Health Services: Reciprocal Arrangements

Gareth Johnson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the estimated cost was of providing health care to residents of other EU states under the provisions of the European Health Insurance Card; and what proportion of those costs were successfully recovered from the other member states for each of the last five years.

Daniel Poulter: The amount paid to the United Kingdom for providing health care to residents of other European Economic Area countries under the provisions of the European Health Insurance Card (EHIC) is shown in the following table:
	
		
			  £ 
			 2007-08 20,500,000 
			 2008-09 24,700,000 
			 2009-10 27,700,000 
			 2010-11 26,300,000 
			 2011-12 26,400,000 
		
	
	The Department recovers all costs where an EHIC has been presented by the patient and the treatment reported by the treating trust. In addition, the Department also operates formula based agreements for reimbursement with some countries. The Department does not hold data as to the number of treatments provided under the scheme that were not reported.

Hospitals: Construction

Ben Wallace: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what assistance he provides to hospital trusts who wish to build a new district general hospital.

Anna Soubry: Individual national health service trusts and NHS foundation trusts are responsible for developing and taking forward their own capital investment proposals following a well-established Business Case approvals system. Trusts are advised to contact and discuss projects with capital leads at their respective strategic health authorities (SHAs); the SHA's role includes advising on the guidance available, including that produced by the Department, which must be followed in producing Business Cases.

Hospitals: Crimes of Violence

Diane Abbott: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many NHS staff were assaulted in hospitals in each of the last five years.

Anna Soubry: The numbers of reported physical assaults against staff in the national health service, in England have been collected annually since 2004-05.
	The numbers of reported physical assaults in each of the last five years are in the following table.
	
		
			 Reported physical assaults against NHS staff 
			  2006-07 2007-08 2008-09 2009-10 2010-11 
			 Acute/foundation trusts 9,685 10,983 11,088 13,219 13,436 
			 Ambulance Trusts 1,006 1,465 1,240 1,262 1,566 
			 Mental health/learning disability settings 41,569 39,934 38,958 38,959 39,321 
			 Primary care trusts 3,445 3,607 3,472 3,278 3,507 
			 Special and strategic authorities 4 4 0 0 0 
			 Total 55,709 55,993 54,758 56,718 57,830 
		
	
	Information on the number of reported physical assaults against NHS staff in hospitals for the years 2006-07 to 2007-08 is contained in the tables showing the number of reported physical assaults on NHS staff from 2004-05 to 2007-08, broken down by NHS trust/PCT, which have already been placed in the Library.
	Information on the number of reported physical assaults against NHS staff in hospitals for the years 2008-09 to 2010-11 is contained in the ‘Tables showing the number of reported physical assaults on NHS staff in 2008-09, broken down by NHS trust/PCT’ and ‘Tables showing the number of reported physical assaults on NHS staff in 2009-10, broken down by NHS trust/PCT’ and ‘Tables showing the number of reported physical assaults on NHS staff in 2010-11, broken down by NHS trust/PCT’, which have already been placed in the Library.

Hospitals: Waiting Lists

Simon Hughes: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many people in (a) England, (b) London and (c) Southwark waited for more than 52 weeks for treatment after referral in each of the last six years.

Anna Soubry: The available information is shown in the following tables:
	
		
			 Number of patients that waited more than a year from referral for admitted treatment 
			  England London strategic health authority Southwark primary care trust 
			 2008-09 21,819 6,499 109 
			 2009-10 5,151 1,316 37 
			 2010-11 4,160 978 29 
			 2011-12 7,389 1,678 131 
		
	
	
		
			 Number of patients that waited more than a year from referral for non admitted treatment 
			  England London SHA Southwark PCX 
			 2008-09 53,819 9,604 346 
			 2009-10 14,993 3,571 94 
			 2010-11 11,191 2,065 76 
			 2011-12 13,045 2,767 164 
			 Note: Data are available from 2008-09. Patients who commenced treatment on admitted and non admitted pathways are shown separately. Source: Department of Health Unify2 data collection—referral to treatment waiting time statistics 
		
	
	Latest data for June 2012 show that 85.2% of admitted patients and 98.1% of non-admitted patients in Southwark PCT started their treatment within a maximum of 18 weeks of referral. 91.6% of patients waiting to start treatment had waited less than 18 weeks.

Hyperandrogenism

Diane Abbott: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many children were diagnosed with hyperandrogenism in each of the last five years.

Daniel Poulter: This information is not available. The term hyperandrogenism is used to describe the symptoms resulting from a range of diseases and so is not collected as a single condition.

Medical Records

Bill Esterson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what assessment he has made of the effectiveness of the arrangements for the sharing of patient medical histories between general practitioners and hospitals.

Daniel Poulter: In response to the Department's consultation on ‘Liberating the NHS: An Information Revolution’, professional groups argued for a 21(st)-century person-centred electronic health and social care system, with information recorded once at the first appropriate contact with health and care services and shared across boundaries safely. They argued for a changed national role, allowing greater local innovation and market development in information technology (IT). There was also clear consensus that national standards are needed to allow information to move freely through the health and care system and to inspire trust in that information.
	The NHS Future Forum also made a series of recommendations building on this issue—including the need for systems to support joined-up care across the whole health, care and support sector. Service providers and commissioners should ensure that information integrates around the needs of the individual. The national health service and social care services must use IT systems to share data about service users electronically. How this is achieved should be for individual health and care providers to decide, but with common standards. The key requirement is interoperability—IT systems talking to each other—including the adoption of the NHS number across health and social care.
	There is still progress to be made, as in many cases IT systems have their own ‘standards' that often do not work with other systems. This is analogous to telecoms companies having their own sets of phone numbers for their network and their own SIM cards that only work with their own phones. Important information tends to be communicated on paper, often after a delay. Systems are often detached from routine professional care, which can lead to frustration and to poor recording of data.
	Properly joined-up care needs information systems that talk to each other. This approach, based on nationally set information standards, will enable information to be captured once and shared right across the health and care system. National standards and implementation guidance provide the foundation for the joining up of systems so that health, care and support can move away from solutions that work only in their area. Rather, our information will be able to follow us across organisational boundaries as people move between services, and new innovations and ideas can be taken up.
	Concerns over security and privacy issues—and a lack of clarity for professionals in understanding what level of information sharing is permitted—can lead to a culture that is overly risk averse and reluctant to share information at all, even where it would improve our care. The NHS Future Forum work has heard the clear message that:
	‘not sharing information has the potential to do more harm than sharing it’.
	There is currently an independent review of information governance, led by Dame Fiona Caldicott, that is looking at the balance between protecting people's confidentiality and enabling information to flow across the system for the benefit of patients and service users—and the wider health service. The review is expected to report next year.
	There are numerous examples of technology that are transforming care and where professionals are already championing effective information use. Simple examples include the use of secure electronic communication for sharing information between people, as well as more advanced solutions that allow systems to join up. There is a clear need to build on these and free up professionals to innovate and lead, seeing improving and using information as core elements of their job.

Medical Records

Bill Esterson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will consider improving medical record sharing between general practitioners and hospitals in order to minimise the risk associated with prescriptions and treatment being offered without access to relevant medical histories.

Daniel Poulter: In May 2012, the Government published its information strategy for health and social care, ‘The power of information: putting all of us in control of the health and care information we need’
	http://informationstrategy.dh.gov.uk
	A key ambition of the strategy is for information to be used to drive integrated care—within and between organisations, and across the health, care and support sector as a whole. This includes professionals providing care through connected information to support safer, more integrated care, for example, through online access to general practitioner (GP) records in hospitals.
	As a result of this, the professionals providing care will have more complete information. Errors or cases of lost or delayed data will be reduced, as will the need for us to repeat the same information to different professionals. In addition, sharing test results quickly in an understandable way will become an integral part of joined-up care.
	Some of the actions within the strategy will need to be led nationally, such as setting common standards to allow information to flow effectively around the system. More detailed implementation planning will be led by organisations including the NHS Commissioning Board, the Health and Social Care Information Centre, and Public Health England.
	But many more actions will require local decisions, local leadership and local drive. Implementation will be driven at the local level, responding to local priorities and needs across health, social care and public health.
	Indeed, the case studies within this document—and in the linked case study bank available online—demonstrate local actions already being implemented to deliver parts of this broader vision.
	An example of good record sharing that is already happening between primary and secondary care is within Worcestershire Health Economy, where there is a new automated approach to support the electronic communication of clinical information seamlessly into GP clinical systems for outpatient letters and discharge summaries. This means paperwork can be completed online and shared between teams across care settings.
	The solution was developed by the acute trust and GPs working in partnership, ensuring the workload and productivity benefits are achieved by all organisations involved. The information strategy signals a move towards this type of localist approach—encouraging diversity and innovation at a local level.
	The NHS Commissioning Board will be accountable for the strategic delivery of primary care IT in the future, with funding and responsibility for GP IT being delegated to Clinical Commissioning Groups (CCGs).
	CCGs, as commissioners, will need to own a local informatics strategy as part of their role in driving forward transformation of services. Clinical systems and their provision are a vital part of this and important enablers in ensuring primary care quality and innovation so as to deliver joined up, safe and high quality care.

NHS: Drugs

Lyn Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what protocols are in place in hospitals for accurately determining the body mass index (BMI) of patients missing several limbs where the correct drug dosage is calculated on the basis of BMI.

Daniel Poulter: The licensed dosage of medicines is not commonly determined on the basis of body mass index (BMI). Dosage is sometimes licensed on the basis of weight (for example, expressed in milligrams per kilogramme), but this would not be altered by missing limbs. However, for a small number of medicines, for example, for cancer, dosages can be based on body surface area.
	Additionally, there is some online information about dosage guidelines for people who have had amputations. In the main, clinicians will deal with such situations on a case by case basis, making a clinical judgment about whether to change the dosage regimen and if so, by how much, according to the needs of the patient.

NHS: Drugs

Graham Evans: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  what the aims and objectives are of the Commercial Medicines Unit in respect of patented medicines in England;
	(2)  which tenders issued by the Commercial Medicines Unit and strategic health authorities included patented medicines in (a) 2009, (b) 2010 and (c) 2011;
	(3)  what the aims and objectives are of the national proprietary tender on medicines issued in December 2011.

Daniel Poulter: The aims and objectives of the Commercial Medicines Unit (CMU) in respect of patented medicines in England are:
	To deliver the procurement of branded/patented medicines by tendering for framework agreements for national health service secondary care providers, allowing aggregation of spend appropriately to achieve value for money; reduce replication; and assure a quality supply chain to the patient;
	To comply with the Public Contracts Regulations 2006 (as amended), reducing the burden on individual trusts to comply with their statutory duties in this respect; and
	To undertake procurement of patented medicines to meet the requirements of DH policy teams.
	The following two tables list tenders for patented medicines issued by the CMU in 2009, 2010 and 2011. Information about tenders issued by strategic health authorities is not held centrally.
	
		
			 Table 1: Tender Description (NHS Frameworks) 
			  Start date End date 
			 North East Proprietary Pharmaceuticals 1 July 2009 30 June 2011 
			 South London Proprietary Products Erythropoietic Stimulating Agents 1 July 2009 30 June 2011 
			 Pan London Proprietary Products—Therapeutics 1 July 2009 30 June 2011 
			 Pan London Proprietary pharmaceuticals 1 July 2009 30 June 2010 
			 Central Proprietary 1 November 2009 31 October 2012 
			 Central Proprietary 1 November 2009 31 October 2011 
			 South East Proprietary 1 November 2009 31 October 2012 
			 South East Proprietary (Therapeutics) 1 November 2009 31 October 2012 
			 South East Proprietary 1 November 2009 31 October 2011 
			 East of England Proprietary Therapeutic Pharmaceuticals 1 November 2009 31 October 2010 
			 East of England Proprietary Therapeutic Pharmaceuticals 1 November 2009 31 October 2010 
			 East of England Proprietary Therapeutics 1 November 2009 31 October 2010 
			 East of England Proprietary Erythropoietic Stimulating Agents 1 November 2009 31 October 2011 
			 London Region (North) Proprietary North Central and East London Erythropoietic Stimulating Factors 1 January 2010 31 December 2011 
			 South West Proprietary and Therapeutic 1 March 2010 28 February 2014 
			 South West Proprietary and Therapeutic 1 March 2010 29 February 2012 
			 North West Proprietary Pharmaceuticals 1 March 2010 28 February 2011 
			 Pan London Proprietary Antiretroviral 1 April 2010 31 March 2011 
			 National Framework Agreement for Recombinant Factor viii products for use in the UK for the treatment of bleeding disorders. Wave One. 1 April 2010 31 March 2013 
		
	
	
		
			 North West London Consortium Proprietary Erythropoietic Stimulating Agents 1 June 2010 31 May 2011 
			 Pan London Proprietary Branded and Therapeutics—Branded 1 July 2010 30 June 2012 
			 Pan London Proprietary Branded and Therapeutics 1 July 2010 30 June 2012 
			 Pan London Proprietary Branded and Therapeutics—Therapeutics 1 July 2010 30 June 2011 
			 National Framework Agreement for Recombinant Factor viii products for use in the UK for the treatment of bleeding disorders. Wave Two. 1 July 2010 30 June 2013 
			 National Framework Agreement for products for the treatment of bleeding disorders. Wave Two (a) 1 July 2010 30 June 2013 
			 South West Proprietary Erythropoietic Stimulating Agents and Homecare delivery 1 August 2010 28 February 2013 
			 East of England Proprietary Pharmaceuticals 1 November 2010 31 October 2012 
			 East of England Proprietary—Therapeutic Pharmaceuticals 1 November 2010 31 October 2012 
			 East of England Proprietary—Therapeutic Pharmaceuticals 1 November 2010 31 October 2012 
			 Central Proprietary (HIV) 1 December 2010 30 November 2011 
			 North West Proprietary 1 March 2011 28 February 2013 
			 Pan London Proprietary Antiretroviral 1 April 2011 31 March 2013 
			 Pan London Proprietary Antiretroviral 1 April 2011 31 March 2013 
			 North West London Consortium Proprietary Erythropoietic Stimulating Agents 1 June 2011 31 December 2012 
			 South London Proprietary Erythropoietic Stimulating Agents 1 July 2011 31 December 2012 
			 Pan London Proprietary Therapeutics 1 July 2011 30 June 2012 
			 North East Proprietary 1 July 2011 30 June 2015 
			 Central Proprietary GCSFs 1 September 2011 31 October 2013 
			 National Proprietary Cancer Drugs to support Cancer Drugs Fund 1 September 2011 31 August 2013 
			 East of England Proprietary Erythropoietic Stimulating Agents 1 November 2011 31 October 2012 
			 Central Proprietary 1 November 2011 31 October 2013 
			 Central Proprietary Therapeutics 1 November 2011 31 October 2013 
			 South East Proprietary Branded 1 November 2011 31 October 2013 
			 South East Proprietary (Therapeutics) 1 November 2011 31 October 2013 
			 National Proprietary 1 December 2011 30 November 2013 
			 North Central London Consortium Proprietary and East London Erythropoietic Stimulating Agents 1 January 2012 31 December 2013 
			 South West Proprietary 1 March 2012 28 February 2014 
			 South West Proprietary and Therapeutic 1 March 2012 28 February 2014 
			 South of England (exc. London) Proprietary Antiretroviral 1 April 2012 31 March 2014 
			 National Proprietary—Treatments for Lysosomal Storage Disorders 1 May 2012 30 April 2014 
		
	
	
		
			 Table 2: Tender Description (DH contracts and frameworks) 
			  Start date End date 
			 Pneumococcal Conjugate vaccine 4 January 2010 31 December 2010 
			 Hib/Men C 1 January 2010 31 December 2010 
		
	
	
		
			 Low dose Diphtheria/Tetanus (Td/IPV) Vaccine 1 October 2009 30 September 2011 
			 Meningitis C Vaccine 1 January 2010 31 December 2010 
			 Diphtheria, Tetanus, Pertussis, Polio and Haemophilus Influenzae Type B (DTP/IPV/HiB) Vaccine 1 April 2010 31 March 2011 
			 Measles, Mumps and Rubella Vaccine (MMR) 1 April 2011 31 March 2012 
			 DTaP/IPV Pre-school vaccine 1 April 2010 31 March 2011 
			 Low dose Diphtheria Tetanus and Inactivated Polio Vaccine (Td/IPV) to NHS Hospitals in England 1 July 2010 30 June 2012 
			 DTAP/IPV vaccine 1 April 2012 31 March 2013 
			 Haemophilus influenza type B, Meningitis C single combined vaccine (HiB/Men C) 1 January 2012 31 December 2012 
			 Meningitis C Vaccine 1 January 2012 31 December 2012 
			 Diphtheria, Tetanus, Pertussis, Polio and Haemophilus Influenzae Type B (DTP/IPV/HiB) Vaccine 1 April 2012 31 March 2013 
			 Low dose diphtheria tetanus and inactivated polio vaccine (Td/IPV). 1 October 2012 01 September 2013 
			 Human Papillomavirus Vaccine 1 July 2012 30 June 2015 
			 Pneumococcal Conjugate vaccine 1 January 2012 31 December 2013 
			 Advanced Purchase Agreement for the Supply of Pandemic Specific Vaccine 1 June2012 31 May 2016 
			 CBRN Countermeasures (1)— (1)— 
			 Various Medicinal Products (1)— (1)— 
			 CBRN Countermeasures 1 September 2009 31 August 2011 
			 CBRN Countermeasures (1)— (1)— 
			 Oseltamivir Suspension 26 April 2010 25 April 2012 
			 Anti-infectives and medicines for the emergency treatment of poisonings framework agreement 1 April 2011 31 March 2013 
			 CBRN Countermeasures 1 January 2011 31 March 2013 
			 CBRN Countermeasures 1 April 2011 31 March 2013 
			 CBRN Countermeasures 1 April 2012 31 March 2014 
			 CBRN Countermeasures 1 June 2009 31 May 2011 
			 CBRN Countermeasures 1 June 2009 31 March 2014 
			 (1) One off purchase. 
		
	
	With respect to the national proprietary tender on medicines, in December 2011 the CMU adopted a national tendering (once only) model for those branded medicines lines characterised by relatively simple and similar pricing arrangements across all the English regions. This was introduced to manage the CMU's regional branded/patented medicines programme more efficiently; to reduce the administrative workload for the bidding suppliers, the CMU and the English NHS Trusts. More complex and variably priced branded/patented medicines remain on the previous CMU regional level tendering programme.

NHS: Internet

Karen Lumley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps his Department is taking to utilise the internet as a means of providing better quality health services.

Anna Soubry: The Government's information strategy for health and social care in England provides the clear case for change, the ambition and next steps for information and information technology across health and care to drive more joined up, safer, better care for everyone.
	The strategy, ‘The power of information’ which was published on 21 May 2012, sets out a ‘digital first' approach—adopting digital methods to deliver health care—but makes clear that face-to-face contact with our health and care professionals will remain an essential, core part of our care. Where there are high quality, low cost alternatives to face-to-face contact with our health and care professionals then, increasingly, we should have the choice to use them.
	Over time the use of digital and online technologies will simplify services for most of us, and will enable care professionals to focus more time on face-to-face care when it is really needed, reaching out to those who have the greatest need for support.
	As one example of specific action, by 2015, all general practices will be expected to make available electronic booking and cancelling of appointments, ordering of repeat prescriptions, communication with the practice and access to records to anyone registered with the practice that requests these services.
	A small number of actions will need to be led nationally, such as setting common standards to allow information to flow effectively around the system. More detailed implementation planning will be led by organisations including the NHS Commissioning Board, the Health and Social Care Information Centre, and Public Health England.
	But many more actions will require local decisions, local leadership and local drive. Implementation will be driven at the local level, responding to local priorities and needs across health, social care and public health. Indeed, the case studies within this document—and in the linked case study bank available online—demonstrate local actions already being implemented to deliver parts of this broader vision.
	The information strategy is available online at:
	http://informationstrategy.dh.gov.uk/
	The strategy has already been placed in the Library.

NHS: Pay

Julian Sturdy: To ask the Secretary of State for Health when he expects to publish his Department's report on NHS regional pay.

Anna Soubry: The Government have received pre-publication copies of the NHS and Senior Salaries Pay Review Body reports on market facing pay. We are considering the recommendations and will publish the reports in due course.

NHS: Telephone Services

Stephen McPartland: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what estimate he has made of (a) the number of NHS helplines which use 084 telephone numbers, (b) the number of calls made to such helplines in the latest period for which figures are available and (c) the total cost to consumers of such calls.

Anna Soubry: The Department has made no assessment of the number of NHS helplines that use 084 numbers, other than NHS Direct which is still accessible through 0845 4647 until the new, free-to-call, NHS 111 service is fully rolled-out. Such information as is available is in the following table:
	
		
			 Calls to NHS Direct 
			  Number of calls (thousand) 
			 2003-04 5,244 
			 2004-05 5,369 
			 2005-06 5,522 
			 2006-07 5,018 
			 2007-08 4,855 
			 2008-09 5,051 
			 2009-10 4,920 
			 2010-11 4,699 
			 2011-12 4,393 
			 Source: Unpublished but validated data 
		
	
	This information refers solely to calls to NHS Direct's 0845 4647 service. Data are not available prior to 2003-04 as NHS Direct was not a national organisation at the time.
	Calls to NHS Direct cost a maximum of 5p per minute from a BT landline. Mobiles and other Networks may vary.

Nutrition

Diane Abbott: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how much his Department has spent on its Supermeals campaign since the inception of the campaign; how it is measuring the results of the campaign; and whether it plans to continue with the campaign.

Daniel Poulter: This year's Supermeals campaign was part of the ongoing Change4Life programme aimed at encouraging and supporting people to make small but significant lifestyle changes to improve their health. People sometimes think eating healthier is more expensive and difficult, but with time and experience, people who plan their shopping and their meals are more likely to make healthier choices.
	The campaign offered discounts on healthy ingredients, such as fruit and vegetables and low fat yoghurts, at more than 1,000 Asda, Co-operative Food and Aldi stores across England.
	4 million recipe packs with quick healthy meal ideas were distributed to Change4Life supporters and an online recipe finder helped families plan their meals.
	100,000 free copies of a brand new cookbook with celebrity chef Ainsley Harriott were also made available. It contained a month's worth of popular, healthy recipes for under £5 to help families make the most of the offers available at their local stores.
	YouTube cooking tutorials with Ainsley Harriott were also made available on the Change4Life website.
	The campaign costs (ex VAT) were as follows:
	Design and printing 4.07 million recipe packs—£213,000
	Development of YouTube videos (includes production costs for venue, logistics, filming, editing and other expenses in orchestrating the footage)—£22,000
	National press advertising—£354,732
	Online digital advertising—£175,000
	A full evaluation of the campaign has been completed and will be published in line with the Department's freedom of information publication scheme.
	Promoting healthy lifestyles, particularly from a young age is a priority for the Government. To continue to encourage healthy eating we shall build on the inspiration of the Olympics and Paralympics through active efforts to improve the health and well-being of people of all ages.

Out-patients: Attendance

Diane Abbott: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many people missed hospital appointments in each of the last five years.

Anna Soubry: The information is shown in the following tables:
	
		
			  First attendances seen First attendances missed (did not attend) First appointments Subsequent attendances seen Subsequent attendances missed (did not attend) 
			 2007-08 13,608,843 1,356,831 14,965,674 29,527,041 3,862,041 
			 2008-09 14,953,410 1,430,296 16,383,706 31,808,019 4,090,929 
			 2009-10 16,045,346 1,544,781 17,590,127 33,473,775 4,155,649 
			 2010-11 16,828,630 1,589,611 18,418,241 35,171,162 4,138,620 
			 2011-12 16,891,881 1,539,655 18,431,536 35,949,907 3,911,124 
		
	
	
		
			  Subsequent appointments Total attendances seen Total attendances missed (did not attend) Total appointments 
			 2007-08 33,389,082 43,135,884 5,218,872 48,354,756 
			 2008-09 35,898,948 46,761,429 5,521,225 52,282,654 
			 2009-10 37,629,424 49,519,121 5,700,430 55,219,551 
			 2010-11 39,309,782 51,999,792 5,728,231 57,728,023 
			 2011-12 39,861,031 52,841,788 5,450,779 58,292,567 
			 Note: Out-patient appointments, Consultant led, All specialties, England, 2007-08 to 2011-12 Source: Department of Health Quarterly Activity Return (QAR)

Reflex Sympathetic Dystrophy Syndrome

Iain Stewart: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  what discussions he has had with health authorities in (a) the US and (b) other EU countries on the diagnosis and treatment of reflex-sympathetic dystrophy;
	(2)  whether his Department provides guidance to GPs, hospitals and primary care trusts on the diagnosis and treatment of people with reflex-sympathetic dystrophy; and if he will publish any such guidance.

Norman Lamb: Ministers have had no discussions with health authorities in other states on the diagnosis and treatment of complex regional pain syndrome (one variant of which was previously known as reflex-sympathetic dystrophy) and have no current plans to commission guidance specifically on this condition. The National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence is currently developing a clinical guideline and a quality standard for the management of pain more generally; and guidance on complex regional pain syndrome is available from authoritative professional sources, including the Royal National Hospital for Rheumatic Diseases, one of the leading United Kingdom centres for the condition.

Strokes

David Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what estimate his Department has made of the critical mass of patients required for a hyper-acute stroke unit capable of delivering the patient outcomes identified in the National Stroke Strategy.

Anna Soubry: Hyper-acute stroke units (HASUs) should be located where patients can gain timely access to high quality expertise in diagnosing, treating and managing strokes. The National Stroke Strategy described such a service as one where there is 24 hour, seven day week access to a stroke triage system, expert clinical assessment, timely imaging and intravenous thrombolysis, where appropriate.
	Neither the Stroke Strategy or the NICE Quality Standard prescribes the critical mass of patients needed for a viable, high quality HASU. However, there is currently a review of stroke services in the Midlands and East strategic health authority cluster and, within its service specification for hyper-acute stroke care, it states that at least 600 stroke patient admissions are typically required to provide sufficient patient load to make a HASU clinically sustainable.
	Patient volume is just one element of a range of characteristics that define a quality acute service. Others include availability of specialist staff at all hours, continuous access to imaging and other diagnostic facilities; pre-hospital travel times and clinical and financial sustainability.

Strokes

David Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if his Department will publish 30 day mortality rates for stroke patients in England in each (a) region and (b) stroke network for the last year for which figures are available.

Anna Soubry: The Department does not collect this information. However the information can be found within the National Sentinel Stroke Audit which is produced by the Royal College of Physicians.
	www.rcplondon.ac.uk/sites/default/files/national-sentinel-stroke-audit-2010-public-report-and-appendices_0.pdf

Strokes

Diane Abbott: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many people of each (a) age and (b) gender under the age of 21 had strokes in each location in each of the last five years.

Anna Soubry: The following tables provide information on finished admission episodes (FAEs) for patients aged 21 and under with a primary or secondary diagnosis of stroke, by age, gender and strategic health authority of residence for the years 2006-07 to 2010-11.
	It is possible for an individual to have more than one admission to hospital with a stroke within any given year and so the information given in the table is not a count of the number of people who have had a stroke.
	
		
			 Count of finished admission episodes (FAEs)(1) for patients aged 21 and under with a primary or secondary diagnosis of stroke(2) by age, gender and SHA of residence(3) for the years 2006-07 to 2010-11(4) 
			 Activity in English NHS Hospitals and English NHS commissioned activity in the independent sector—2010-11 
			  East Midlands Strategic Health Authority East of England Strategic Health Authority London Strategic Health Authority North East Strategic Health Authority 
			  Q33 Q35 Q36 Q30 
			  Male Female Male Female Male Female Male Female 
			 Under 1 27 12 10 12 37 30 6 3 
			 1 4 — 2 4 8 4 — 1 
			 2 — — 5 3 14 7 1 1 
			 3 1 1 3 1 4 5 — — 
			 4 1 — — — — 1 — 4 
			 5 — — — 1 3 4 — 1 
			 6 — — 3 1 1 — 2 — 
			 7 — 1 1 4 — 2 — — 
			 8 2 1 1 1 3 5 — 1 
			 9 2 — 2 1 4 3 — — 
			 10 4 — — — — 1 — — 
			 11 2 4 — — 3 1 — — 
			 12 7 1 — — — 2 — — 
			 13 12 2 — 2 2 — — — 
			 14 1 2 — — 6 2 — — 
		
	
	
		
			 15 1 — 1 3 9 3 2 2 
			 16 — — 6 3 5 — — — 
			 17 1 — 6 1 4 — 1 2 
			 18 7 5 2 3 6 9 — — 
			 19 3 3 5 6 2 6 2 1 
			 20 2 — 8 — 18 4 4 1 
			 21 5 4 1 3 3 4 — — 
		
	
	
		
			 Activity in English NHS Hospitals and English NHS commissioned activity in the independent sector—2010-11 
			  North West Strategic Health Authority South Central Strategic Health Authority South East Coast Strategic Health Authority South West Strategic Health Authority 
			  Q31 Q38 Q37 Q39 
			  Male Female Male Female Male Female Male Female 
			 Under 1 23 18 17 7 19 9 20 12 
			 1 3 5 2 3 3 2 1 3 
			 2 4 4 1 1 6 — 1 — 
			 3 — 2 — — 1 — 3 — 
			 4 — 2 — — — 1 — — 
			 5 3 2 — — 3 — 1 1 
			 6 3 — 2 5 2 — 1 — 
			 7 — — 2 — — 1 — — 
			 8 — — — 1 1 7 — — 
			 9 3 1 — — — — — 1 
			 10 3 2 — — 1 — 1 1 
			 11 1 3 2 16 — 1 1 — 
			 12 1 1 — — 1 — 1 1 
			 13 1 1 — 2 — — 1 2 
			 14 1 1 — — 1 1 2 2 
			 15 1 1 1 — 5 — 1 — 
			 16 4 5 2 1 1 1 2 2 
			 17 5 2 4 — — 1 3 — 
			 18 2 2 — 3 4 3 6 1 
			 19 7 3 2 1 4 1 1 4 
			 20 3 3 1 2 — — 5 1 
			 21 — 2 — 1 2 3 4 2 
		
	
	
		
			 Activity in English NHS Hospitals and English NHS commissioned activity in the independent sector—2010-11 
			  West Midlands Strategic Health Authority Yorkshire and the Humber Strategic Health Authority Wales Foreign (incl. Isle of Man and Channel Islands) Unknown 
			  Q34 Q32 Q99 X Y 
			  Male Female Male Female Male Female Male Female Male Female 
			 Under 1 16 2 20 28 7 — 2 1 4 1 
			 1 1 6 3 6 — — 2 — — — 
			 2 2 1 — 1 1 — 1 — — — 
			 3 1 1 2 1 — — — — — — 
			 4 1 — — — — — 1 — — — 
			 5 1 1 — 1 — — — — — — 
			 6 4 2 — — — — — — — — 
			 7 — 3 1 1 2 — — — — — 
			 8 3 — — — — — 1 — — — 
			 9 — 2 — — — — — — — — 
			 10 1 — 3 1 — — — — — — 
			 11 — 1 2 1 — — — — — — 
			 12 3 — 1 2 — — — 1 — — 
			 13 2 — 1 — — — — — — — 
			 14 2 6 1 1 — — — — — — 
			 15 — 3 3 — — — — — — — 
			 16 1 4 2 — — 1 1 — — — 
		
	
	
		
			 17 3 5 2 — — — — — — — 
			 18 3 3 1 3 2 — — 1 — — 
			 19 6 — 2 3 1 2 — — — — 
			 20 4 3 4 3 — — — — — — 
			 21 3 — 4 8 — — — 1 — — 
		
	
	
		
			 Activity in English NHS Hospitals and English NHS commissioned activity in the independent sector—2009-10 
			  East Midlands Strategic Health Authority East of England Strategic Health Authority London Strategic Health Authority North East Strategic Health Authority 
			  Q33 Q35 Q36 Q30 
			  Male Female Male Female Male Female Male Female 
			 Under 1 8 9 9 5 24 26 6 5 
			 1 2 1 5 3 9 24 — — 
			 2 2 — 2 — 29 5 — — 
			 3 — 1 2 2 7 4 — — 
			 4 2 — 5 2 1 12 — — 
			 5 — 1 6 — 2 5 — — 
			 6 3 1 4 5 3 — — — 
			 7 1 1 — 2 2 — — — 
			 8 — — — 2 — 4 — — 
			 9 2 — — — 1 1 — — 
			 10 1 — 8 — 1 2 — — 
			 11 — 1 — — 1 1 1 — 
			 12 10 4 1 2 12 4 — — 
			 13 1 — 2 — 9 2 — — 
			 14 1 — — — 3 5 — — 
			 15 — — — 6 7 6 — — 
			 16 4 — 3 6 7 4 — — 
			 17 — 2 8 2 5 2 — 1 
			 18 4 3 2 6 1 4 1 1 
			 19 4 2 — 5 8 3 — — 
			 20 2 — 6 5 2 8 3 1 
			 21 — 2 3 5 6 1 4 2 
		
	
	
		
			 Activity in English NHS Hospitals and English NHS commissioned activity in the independent sector—2009-10 
			  North West Strategic Health Authority South Central Strategic Health Authority South East Coast Strategic Health Authority South West Strategic Health Authority 
			  Q31 Q38 Q37 Q39 
			  Male Female Male Female Male Female Male Female 
			 Under 1 17 14 21 7 19 6 22 11 
			 1 5 1 1 1 2 3 2 — 
			 2 4 1 2 — 1 2 1 1 
			 3 2 — 1 — — 3 1 1 
			 4 2 — 1 — 3 3 1 1 
			 5 2 — 1 — 1 — — — 
			 6 10 — — 1 — 3 — — 
			 7 2 — 1 — — — — 2 
			 8 2 4 — — — 2 — 2 
			 9 1 1 — 3 1 — — — 
			 10 — — — — 1 1 3 1 
			 11 1 — — 1 — — 5 — 
			 12 3 1 2 3 3 — 3 1 
			 13 — 1 1 — — — 1 5 
			 14 1 — 1 — 1 — — 1 
			 15 1 6 2 — 2 1 — 4 
			 16 4 1 3 3 1 — 3 2 
			 17 9 1 5 — — 1 — — 
			 18 2 2 2 1 8 5 2 1 
			 19 3 3 3 1 2 3 4 3 
		
	
	
		
			 20 2 3 7 2 3 4 2 1 
			 21 6 2 4 — 3 1 1 — 
		
	
	
		
			 Activity in English NHS Hospitals and English NHS commissioned activity in the independent sector—2009-10 
			  West Midlands Strategic Health Authority Yorkshire and the Humber Strategic Health Authority Wales Foreign (incl. Isle of Man and Channel Islands) Unknown 
			  Q34 Q32 Q99 X Y 
			  Male Female Male Female Male Female Male Female Male Female 
			 Under 1 21 20 8 15 1 2 1 1 5 2 
			 1 — 3 2 2 — 1 — 1 — — 
			 2 2 1 — 5 1 — 1 — — — 
			 3 1 1 1 — — — — — — — 
			 4 2 — 4 — 1 — — — — — 
			 5 — — 1 — — — — — — — 
			 6 — 5 2 — — — — — — — 
			 7 — 1 — — 2 — — — — — 
			 8 — — 1 2 — — — — — — 
			 9 6 4 1 2 — — — — — — 
			 10 3 — 2 2 — — — — — — 
			 11 3 1 1 — — — 1 — — 1 
			 12 1 — — 3 — — — — — — 
			 13 1 3 — 2 — — — — — — 
			 14 2 1 1 — — — — 1 — — 
			 15 — — 1 — — — 1 — — — 
			 16 2 — 5 1 — — — — — — 
			 17 — — 1 — 1 — — — — — 
			 18 4 — 4 1 — 1 — — — — 
			 19 3 4 1 2 — — 1 — 1 — 
			 20 2 4 2 2 — — 3 1 — — 
			 21 5 — 5 1 — 1 — — — — 
		
	
	
		
			 Activity in English NHS Hospitals and English NHS commissioned activity in the independent sector—2008-09 
			  East Midlands Strategic Health Authority East of England Strategic Health Authority London Strategic Health Authority North East Strategic Health Authority 
			  Q33 Q35 Q36 Q30 
			  Male Female Male Female Male Female Male Female 
			 Under 1 16 7 6 3 27 19 6 6 
			 1 — 1 7 6 9 11 2 1 
			 2 — — 5 — 10 — — — 
			 3 2 — 2 2 1 12 — — 
			 4 — — — — 2 4 — 2 
			 5 1 — — — 2 — 1 — 
			 6 — — — 1 2 2 — — 
			 7 1 1 — — 3 3 — — 
			 8 4 — — 1 10 — — — 
			 9 3 1 2 — 1 1 1 1 
			 10 1 — 1 — — 3 4 — 
			 11 2 4 1 — 1 3 — — 
			 12 1 — — 3 4 1 — — 
			 13 2 2 2 — 2 1 — — 
			 14 — 2 — 2 2 4 — — 
			 15 — — 2 3 1 1 1 1 
			 16 2 — 3 1 1 2 — 2 
			 17 2 3 5 5 2 1 2 2 
			 18 — 4 3 1 3 8 — — 
			 19 4 — 2 1 2 3 1 — 
			 20 4 1 1 1 6 2 1 — 
			 21 — — 4 — 1 3 2 2 
		
	
	
		
			 Activity in English NHS Hospitals and English NHS commissioned activity in the independent sector—2008-09 
			  North West Strategic Health Authority South Central Strategic Health Authority South East Coast Strategic Health Authority South West Strategic Health Authority 
			  Q31 Q38 Q37 Q39 
			  Male Female Male Female Male Female Male Female 
			 Under 1 14 5 14 8 24 7 13 14 
			 1 2 8 5 1 — 2 11 6 
			 2 — — 5 — 1 — 2 1 
			 3 2 — — 2 3 2 3 2 
			 4 2 1 1 3 1 1 1 2 
			 5 1 2 — 2 3 — — — 
			 6 2 2 1 — — — 1 2 
			 7 1 1 — 2 — — 2 — 
			 8 2 2 1 — 3 1 — 4 
			 9 1 — — 1 — 2 — 3 
			 10 — 1 — 3 3 1 2 1 
			 11 3 1 — 1 — 1 3 — 
			 12 2 1 1 — 3 — 3 2 
			 13 2 — 4 2 — — 3 — 
			 14 1 4 2 — — 1 — — 
			 15 3 3 1 1 2 — 1 — 
			 16 3 3 — 2 3 1 2 2 
			 17 3 8 4 — 1 1 8 3 
			 18 6 — 2 — 8 3 3 1 
			 19 1 5 3 6 1 2 1 1 
			 20 1 2 — 3 1 — 2 2 
			 21 3 4 4 4 2 1 2 — 
		
	
	
		
			 Activity in English NHS Hospitals and English NHS commissioned activity in the independent sector—2008-09 
			  West Midlands Strategic Health Authority Yorkshire and the Humber Strategic Health Authority Wales Scotland Northern Ireland Foreign (incl. Isle of Man and Channel Islands) Unknown 
			  Q34 Q32 Q99 S Z X Y 
			  Male Female Male Female Male Female Male Male Male Female Male Female 
			 Under 1 16 10 19 10 1 2 1 — — 1 4 2 
			 1 5 1 5 — — 1 — — — 1 — — 
			 2 — 2 2 — — — — — — 1 — — 
			 3 — 1 4 — — — — — — — — — 
			 4 1 1 4 — — — — — 2 — 1 — 
			 5 1 3 2 2 — — — — — — — — 
			 6 1 3 — — — — — — — 1 — — 
			 7 1 — — — 1 — — — — — — — 
			 8 — — 2 1 — — — — — 1 — — 
			 9 2 — — 1 1 — — — — — — — 
			 10 1 — 3 — — — — 1 — — — — 
			 11 1 4 — 3 — — — — 1 — — — 
			 12 1 — — 1 — — — — — — — — 
			 13 — 1 — — — — — — — 1 — — 
			 14 — — — — — — — — — — — — 
			 15 2 — 2 — — — — — 1 — — — 
			 16 3 1 2 1 — 2 — — — — — — 
			 17 5 4 1 2 — — — — — 1 — — 
			 18 6 2 2 — — — — — — — — — 
			 19 — 2 5 — — — — — — — — 2 
			 20 4 — 5 2 — — — — 1 — 1 — 
			 21 4 2 2 2 — — — — — — — — 
		
	
	
		
			 Activity in English NHS Hospitals and English NHS commissioned activity in the independent sector—2007-08 
			  East Midlands Strategic Health Authority East of England Strategic Health Authority London Strategic Health Authority North East Strategic Health Authority 
			  Q33 Q35 Q36 Q30 
			  Male Female Male Female Male Female Male Female 
			 Under 1 21 6 20 6 30 17 9 1 
			 1 1 1 4 1 8 8 1 3 
			 2 2 2 — 1 5 2 — — 
		
	
	
		
			 3 — 2 4 4 1 2 — 1 
			 4 1 1 3 — 2 1 — 1 
			 5 — 1 — 2 1 5 — — 
			 6 2 — 2 1 3 3 — — 
			 7 — — 1 — 6 1 1 1 
			 8 1 — — — 10 3 1 — 
			 9 — — — — 1 — — 1 
			 10 — 1 2 — 2 1 — — 
			 11 — — 1 3 1 1 — — 
			 12 1 1 4 — 2 — — — 
			 13 1 6 1 5 — — — — 
			 14 — — 2 — 3 4 — — 
			 15 2 1 2 4 5 8 1 — 
			 16 1 — 5 1 1 5 — — 
			 17 2 5 2 1 2 1 4 1 
			 18 3 1 3 2 — 2 — — 
			 19 3 1 1 1 2 4 — — 
			 20 — — 1 3 3 9 4 1 
			 21 5 — 5 4 2 4 — — 
		
	
	
		
			 Activity in English NHS Hospitals and English NHS commissioned activity in the independent sector—2007-08 
			  North West Strategic Health Authority South Central Strategic Health Authority South East Coast Strategic Health Authority South West Strategic Health Authority 
			  Q31 Q38 Q37 Q39 
			  Male Female Male Female Male Female Male Female 
			 Under 1 28 17 12 11 3 4 9 6 
			 1 — 9 1 — 1 1 3 5 
			 2 — 2 — 1 7 4 3 1 
			 3 — — 3 — 1 1 — — 
			 4 2 — — — — 1 — 4 
			 5 — 1 1 — — — 1 — 
			 6 — 4 — 1 1 — — — 
			 7 1 — — 1 4 — 2 1 
			 8 2 3 — — — — — — 
			 9 2 1 3 — 1 2 1 — 
			 10 — 1 — — 3 — — — 
			 11 — 1 — — 3 1 3 — 
			 12 — 1 — 2 — — 1 — 
			 13 3 — 1 1 — 1 1 1 
			 14 — 2 — — 3 1 — — 
			 15 3 2 3 — 2 — — 2 
			 16 2 2 2 2 — — 1 4 
			 17 5 — — 1 3 2 — — 
			 18 2 — 1 5 1 3 3 1 
			 19 4 — 1 1 3 — 1 2 
			 20 8 1 3 — 3 2 3 2 
			 21 1 3 10 — 2 2 2 5 
		
	
	
		
			 Activity in English NHS Hospitals and English NHS commissioned activity in the independent sector—2007-08 
			  West Midlands Strategic Health Authority Yorkshire and the Humber Strategic Health Authority England—Not otherwise specified Wales Scotland Foreign (incl. Isle of Man and Channel Islands) Unknown 
			  Q34 Q32 U Q99 S X Y 
			  Male Female Male Female Male Female Male Female Male Male Female Male Female 
			 Under 1 17 11 14 16 — 1 1 1 1 — — 5 8 
			 1 5 1 3 2 — — — — — 1 — — — 
			 2 1 2 7 — — — — — — — — — — 
			 3 — — — — — — — — — — — — — 
			 4 2 — 1 — — — — — — 9 — — — 
			 5 1 1 3 — — — 1 — — 3 — — 1 
		
	
	
		
			 6 — — — 3 — — — — — — — — — 
			 7 — 1 — — — — — — — 1 — — — 
			 8 1 2 — 1 — — — — — — — — — 
			 9 2 — — — — — — — — — — — — 
			 10 1 — — — — — — — — — — — — 
			 11 4 — 2 — — — — — — — — — — 
			 12 4 1 — 1 — — — — — — — 1 — 
			 13 2 1 — 1 — — — — — — — — — 
			 14 1 1 1 — — — — — — — — — — 
			 15 4 — 3 3 — — 1 — — — — — — 
			 16 2 — 2 2 1 — — — — — 1 1 — 
			 17 2 1 2 1 — — — — — — — — — 
			 18 1 3 3 — — — — — — — — — — 
			 19 1 1 2 2 — — — 1 — — — — — 
			 20 1 4 1 2 — — 1 — — 1 1 — — 
			 21 5 — 4 — — — — — — 2 — 1 — 
		
	
	
		
			 Activity in English NHS Hospitals and English NHS commissioned activity in the independent sector—2006-07 
			  East Midlands Strategic Health Authority East of England Strategic Health Authority London Strategic Health Authority North East Strategic Health Authority 
			  Q33 Q35 Q36 Q30 
			  Male Female Male Female Notspecified Male Female Male Female 
			 Under 1 7 11 13 7 — 31 19 1 8 
			 1 1 1 2 4 — 14 1 2 — 
			 2 2 — 3 1 — 5 1 1 — 
			 3 2 — 3 — — 4 3 — — 
			 4 — — — — — 3 1 4 — 
			 5 — — 3 2 — 5 3 1 — 
			 6 2 2 — — — 3 — — — 
			 7 1 — 1 — — 5 1 — — 
			 8 — 2 4 1 — — 1 2 — 
			 9 — 2 3 — — 4 17 — — 
			 10 — — 3 1 — 2 — — — 
			 11 — — — 4 1 1 3 — 1 
			 12 — — 1 — — 3 4 2 — 
			 13 2 2 — 2 — 4 2 — — 
			 14 2 1 2 — — 1 11 1 2 
			 15 3 — — 2 — 7 9 1 1 
			 16 2 3 3 1 — 3 6 — 2 
			 17 2 2 4 — — 1 6 — 1 
			 18 2 2 2 1 — 9 2 1 — 
			 19 3 3 2 4 — 2 4 3 — 
			 20 — 2 2 1 — 5 7 1 — 
			 21 6 2 1 3 — 6 11 1 1 
		
	
	
		
			 Activity in English NHS Hospitals and English NHS commissioned activity in the independent sector—2006-07 
			  North West Strategic Health Authority South Central Strategic Health Authority South East Coast Strategic Health Authority South West Strategic Health Authority 
			  Q31 Q38 Q37 Q39 
			  Male Female Male Female Male Female Male Female 
			 Under 1 11 2 7 5 12 2 13 10 
			 1 1 4 1 — 9 1 4 2 
			 2 — 1 5 1 1 1 6 3 
			 3 1 — — — — 2 11 — 
			 4 1 — — — 3 — — 2 
			 5 1 — 2 1 3 1 7 — 
			 6 — 2 3 — 1 — 2 — 
			 7 1 — — — 2 — 1 4 
			 8 1 — — 1 — 1 4 — 
		
	
	
		
			 9 3 1 — — 1 2 1 — 
			 10 — — — — 1 1 3 — 
			 11 — 1 — 1 — — 3 3 
			 12 — — 2 — 1 — 1 2 
			 13 2 — — 3 — — — 1 
			 14 1 2 — — 2 3 — 4 
			 15 2 — 1 — 4 2 — 2 
			 16 4 2 — — — 1 3 4 
			 17 1 2 — 5 5 — 3 1 
			 18 3 1 1 1 1 — — 1 
			 19 4 2 3 1 4 — 2 1 
			 20 2 5 3 2 2 — 6 4 
			 21 5 6 — 3 2 — 2 — 
		
	
	
		
			 Activity in English NHS Hospitals and English NHS commissioned activity in the independent sector—2006-07 
			  West Midlands Strategic Health Authority Yorkshire and the Humber Strategic Health Authority England—Not otherwise specified Wales Scotland Northern Ireland Foreign (incl. Isle of Man and Channel Islands) Unknown 
			  Q34 Q32 U Q99 S Z X Y 
			  Male Female Male Female Male Female Male Female Female Female Male Female Male Female 
			 Under 1 19 5 16 7 — — 1 — — — 1 1 4 2 
			 1 1 — 2 4 — — — 1 — — — — — — 
			 2 3 5 2 — — — — — — — — — — — 
			 3 1 1 2 — — — — — — — 1 — — — 
			 4 — — — — — — — — — — 2 — 2 — 
			 5 1 — — 2 — — — — — — — — — — 
			 6 1 3 — — — — — — — — — — — — 
			 7 — — 2 — — — — — — — — — — — 
			 8 1 — 3 1 — — — — — — — — — 1 
			 9 — 2 1 — 1 — — — — — — — — — 
			 10 1 — — — — — — 1 — — 2 — — — 
			 11 — — — — — — — — — — — — — — 
			 12 — 1 2 2 — — — — — — 2 — — — 
			 13 — 3 1 — — — — — — 1 — — — — 
			 14 2 — 2 1 — — — — — — — — — 1 
			 15 2 1 — — — — — — — — — — — — 
			 16 — 2 — 3 — — — — 1 — — — — — 
			 17 1 5 3 2 — — — — — — — 1 — — 
			 18 3 — 6 2 — — 3 — — — — — — — 
			 19 2 4 3 2 — — 2 — — — — — — — 
			 20 6 1 2 2 1 — — — — — 1 1 — — 
			 21 3 4 3 3 1 1 2 — — — — — — — 
			 (1) Finished admission episodes A finished admission episode (FAE) is the first period of in-patient care under one consultant within one healthcare provider. FAEs are counted against the year in which the admission episode finishes. Admissions do not represent the number of inpatients, as a person may have more than one admission within the year. (2) Number of episodes in which the patient had a (named) primary or secondary diagnosis The number of episodes where this diagnosis was recorded in any of the 20 (14 from 2002-03 to 2006-07 and 7 prior to 2002-03) primary and secondary diagnosis fields in a Hospital Episode Statistics (HES) record. Each episode is only counted once, even if the diagnosis is recorded in more than one diagnosis field of the record. ICD-10 Codes used: I60—Subarachnoid haemorrhage I61—Intracerebral haemorrhage I62—Other nontraumatic intracranial haemorrhage I63—Cerebral infarction I64—Stroke, not specified as haemorrhage or infarction (3 )SHA/PCT of residence The SHA or primary care trust (PCT) containing the patient's normal home address. This does not necessarily reflect where the patient was treated as they may have travelled to another SHA/PCT for treatment. (4) Assessing growth through time HES figures are available from 1989-90 onwards. Changes to the figures over time need to be interpreted in the context of improvements in data quality and coverage (particularly in earlier years), improvements in coverage of independent sector activity (particularly from 2006-07) and changes in NHS practice. For example, apparent reductions in activity may be due to a number of procedures which may now be undertaken in outpatient settings and so no longer include in admitted patient-HES data. Activity in English national health service hospitals and English NHS commissioned activity in the independent sector. Source: Hospital Episode Statistics (HES), Health and Social Care Information Centre

Surgery: Coventry

Bob Ainsworth: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many surgical operations were carried out by the NHS in Coventry in each of the last five years.

Anna Soubry: The information is not available in the format requested.
	The number of finished consultant episodes where there was a main procedure or intervention (OPCS codes A00-O10 and O15-X97) recorded with university hospitals Coventry and Warwickshire national health service trust as the main provider from 2006-07 to 2010-11 is shown in the following table. It is not possible to identify ‘surgery’ using OPSC4 codes and so the data provided include treatments such as injections, radiotherapy and endoscopy.
	
		
			 Count of finished consultant episodes(1) where there was a main procedure or intervention(2) (OPCS codes A01-O10 and O15-X97) recorded with university hospitals Coventry and Warwickshire NHS trust as the main provider(3) from 2006-07 to 2010-11 
			  Finished consultant episodes (FCEs) 
			 2010-11 97,071 
			 2009-10 96,520 
			 2008-09 91,390 
			 2007-08 69,728 
			 2006-07 59,682 
			 (1)Finished Consultant Episode A finished consultant episode (FCE) is a continuous period of admitted patient care under one consultant within one health care provider. FCEs are counted against the year in which they end. Figures do not represent the number of different patients, as a person may have more than one episode of care within the same stay in hospital or in different stays in the same year. (2)Main procedure or intervention The first recorded procedure or intervention in each episode; usually the most resource intensive procedure or intervention performed during the episode. It is appropriate to use main procedure when looking at admission details, (e.g. time waited), but a more complete count of episodes with a particular procedure is obtained by looking at the main and the secondary procedures. The data provided are for OPCS4 procedures; A01-O10 and O15-X97. O11 to O14 and Z Chapter codes have not been included as these would only be recorded for a secondary procedure or intervention. Where a procedure or intervention is recorded there must always be a main procedure or intervention. (3)Hospital Provider A provider code is a unique code that identifies an organisation acting as a health care provider (e.g. NHS Trust or PCT). Hospital providers can also include Treatment Centres (TC). Normally, if data is tabulated by health care provider, the figure for an NHS trust gives the activity of all the sites as one aggregated figure. However, in the case of those with embedded treatment centres, this data is quoted separately. In these cases, '-X' is appended to the code for the rest of the trust, to remind users that the figures are for all sites of the trust excluding the treatment centres. The quality of TC returns are such that data may not be complete. Some NHS trusts have not registered their TC as a separate site, and it is therefore not possible to identify their activity separately. Data from some independent sector providers, where the onus for arrangement of dataflows is on the commissioner, may be missing. Care must be taken when using this data as the counts may be lower than true figures. Data quality: Hospital Episode Statistics (HES) are compiled from data sent by more than 300 NHS trusts and primary care trusts (PCTs) in England and from some independent sector organisations for activity commissioned by the English NHS. The NHS Information Centre for health and social care liaises closely with these organisations to encourage submission of complete and valid data and seeks to minimise inaccuracies. While this brings about improvement over time, some shortcomings remain. Assessing growth through time (In-patients): HES figures are available from 1989-90 onwards. Changes to the figures over time need to be interpreted in the context of improvements in data quality and coverage (particularly in earlier years), improvements in coverage of independent sector activity (particularly from 2006-07) and changes in NHS practice. For example, changes in activity may be due to changes in the provision of care. Source: Hospital Episode Statistics (HES), The Health and Social Care Information Centre

Swine Flu

Paul Flynn: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  what estimate he has made of the proportion of deaths avoided by the use of (a) influenza vaccines and (b) anti-virals in the last 40 months;
	(2)  what his most recent assessment is of the efficacy of the influenza A subtype H1N1 vaccine (a) as a prophylactic and (b) in reducing the symptoms of swine flu;
	(3)  what evidence his Department has evaluated on possible adverse side effects from the use of influenza A subtype H1N1 (a) vaccines and (b) anti-virals in the last 40 months.

Daniel Poulter: No assessment has been made of the proportion of deaths avoided in the last 40 months from use of influenza vaccines and/or antivirals. However, the scientific evidence base underpinning both antiviral and pandemic vaccination was completed in June 2010. The reviews took into account studies completed prior to and after swine flu.
	The antiviral review found that:
	For healthy adults there is strong statistical evidence from clinical trials involving seasonal influenza that zanamivir and oseltamivir, given within 48 hours of symptom onset for clinically-diagnosed “Influenza-Like Illness” reduces the time to symptom alleviation by roughly half of one day.
	In addition, the likelihood of requiring antibiotics is reduced by 60% if antivirals are given within 48 hours on the appearance of symptoms.
	The vaccines review drew conclusions from the available studies which will be taken into account in future pandemic vaccination strategies and also summarised the key issues and challenges.
	Both reviews are available online at:
	www.dh.gov.uk/en/Publicationsandstatistics/Publications/PublicationsPolicyAndGuidance/DH_125318
	The most recent published estimates from United Kingdom countries produced by the Health Protection Agency and others of the effectiveness of influenza vaccination to prevent confirmed influenza A(H1N1) 2009 infection suggest that:
	monovalent pandemic influenza A(H1N1) 2009 vaccination during the 2009-10 influenza pandemic was 72% effective, published article at:
	http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/21251487
	and
	trivalent seasonal influenza vaccination during the 2010-11 influenza season was 56% (95% confidence interval 42% to 66%) effective, published article at:
	www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/22691710
	The same article also highlights the additional residual protection provided by monovalent pandemic influenza A(H1N1) 2009 vaccination given during the 2009-10 pandemic in the 2010-11 influenza season.
	There are no similar published estimates from UK countries of the effectiveness of influenza-vaccination to reduce the symptoms of influenza A(H1N1) 2009 infection, although a study in Scotland suggested that monovalent pandemic influenza A(H1N1) 2009 vaccination was 19.5% (95% confidence interval 0.8% to 34.7%) effective at preventing emergency hospital admissions from influenza-related disorders during the 2009-10 pandemic, published article at:
	www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/22738894
	During the 2009-210 H1N1 pandemic, the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) undertook a proactive safety monitoring strategy for the swine influenza vaccines and antivirals used in the UK. As part of this, the MHRA established a dedicated reporting system, an adjunct to the existing Yellow Card Scheme, for suspected side effects to the vaccines and antivirals. The strategy involved daily analysis of all suspected side effect reports, a real-time statistical analysis of the data and weekly publication of its ongoing review on the MHRA website. As well as such data arising from the UK reporting scheme, the MHRA was fully involved in evaluating other sources of safety data from across Europe.
	Following the swine flu pandemic, the MHRA undertook a cumulative safety review of the swine flu vaccines and antiviral medicines including suspected adverse reaction (ADR) reports received through the dedicated swine influenza ADR webportal and conducting analyses to determine whether the number of reports of adverse events of interest were received more frequently than would be expected in this population. Advice from the Commission on Human Medicines was that the vast majority of reported reactions to the pandemic vaccines and antivirals were consistent with the recognised side effects of these products or conditions associated with influenza itself.
	Since the time of the post-pandemic review the MHRA has been closely monitoring all data sources including spontaneous ADR reports from the UK and other countries worldwide in addition to published studies relating to swine flu vaccines and antivirals. Swine influenza vaccines, including Pandemrix are no longer being used to vaccinate against H1N1 influenza.
	As with all medicines and vaccines on the UK market, the MHRA will keep the safety of swine flu vaccines and antivirals under close review.

Swine Flu

Paul Flynn: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  what the cost was of destruction of the doses of influenza A subtype H1N1 vaccine purchased by the Government but not used;
	(2)  how many doses of influenza A subtype H1N1 vaccine purchased by the Government but not used (a) remain viable, (b) were destroyed and (c) were redistributed;
	(3)  how many doses of influenza A subtype H1N1 vaccine were (a) successfully cancelled prior to delivery and (b) received but not used in the last 40 months;
	(4)  what proportion of those diagnosed with influenza A subtype H1N1 received Tamiflu in the last 40 months;
	(5)  what the total gross cost to the public purse was of purchasing influenza A subtype HIN1 (a) vaccines and (b) anti-viral drugs over the last 40 months.

Daniel Poulter: In the swine flu pandemic there were two suppliers of H1N1 vaccine. 32 million doses were ordered from Baxter and 90 million were ordered from GSK in June 2009. With Baxter, we utilised a break clause in our contract and cancelled remaining orders on 28 February 2010.
	As the Department did not have a break clause with GSK, in line with their agreements with other countries, we entered into more detailed negotiations with a view to reaching a settlement that would be in the interests of both parties This settlement, reached in April 2010, resulted in savings of around a third of the original value of the total orders with GSK. It involved the Department taking total deliveries of 34,838,500 doses of Pandemrix, including vaccine received up to the point of the agreement, the purchase of approx 16 million doses of H5N1 “bird flu” vaccine and courses of the antiviral Relenza to replace stock used in the pandemic.
	H1N1 vaccine is no longer manufactured and, beyond the orders placed during the swine flu, no further orders have been placed.
	H1N1 vaccine is no longer used as it has reached the end of its licensed shelf life. Centrally held stock, amounting to approx 20 million doses was destroyed. Subsequently, in England, unused stock of pandemic specific vaccine held centrally was disposed of by incineration. The cost of incineration was estimated at £115,000. Local national health service bodies will have been responsible for the disposal of stock held locally and details of local disposal costs are not held centrally.
	3.8 million doses of vaccine were donated to the World Health Organisation at the time of the swine flu pandemic.
	In the 2009 H1N1 pandemic over 2.7 million assessments were completed through the National Pandemic Flu Service which resulted in the distribution of 1.1 million antiviral medicines to symptomatic patients who contacted the NPFS and satisfied the eligibility criteria for access to antiviral medicines in England. In subsequent winters, the National Pandemic Flu Service was not used and antiviral medicines were prescribed and dispensed in the community in the normal way. The following amount of antiviral medicines were prescribed and then dispensed in the community (data on antivirals used in hospitals is not collected).
	
		
			 Time period Oseltamivir Phosphate—Tamiflu Zanamivir—Relenza 
			 2010-11 38,798 1,359 
			 2011-12 2,477 77 
			 2012-13 (Quarter 1) 851 8 
			 Source: ePACT data (England only) 
		
	
	The Department has released the “high level pricing information” on pandemic flu vaccine spend up to the end of the vaccine deliveries in April 2010. The sum of payments to GSK and Baxter for all H1N1 vaccine received up to the point that all deliveries ceased was £239 million.
	The total amount spent on antivirals is still considered commercial in confidence. However, specific arrangements are in place with Roche to ensure that Tamiflu returned shortly before it reaches the end of its shelf life can be replaced at a reduced price. Discussions are also taking place with GSK on a suitable shelf life extension programme for Relenza.

Telemedicine

Nigel Adams: To ask the Secretary of State for Health with reference to his Department's whole system demonstrator extended field trial for telecare, what estimate he has made of the likely (a) cost savings from wider adoption of telecare, (b) capital saving by requiring fewer hospital beds and (c) savings in hospital running costs.

Norman Lamb: The Whole System Demonstrator (WSD) programme is the largest randomised control trial of telehealth and telecare anywhere in the world, involving 6,191 patients and 238 GP practices across three sites, Newham, Kent and Cornwall. The telehealth part of the trial focused on three conditions, diabetes, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and coronary heart disease.
	Evaluation of the telecare data is ongoing with peer review of the findings the next step. The WSD telehealth results were formally published in the BMJ on the 22 June 2012—‘Effect of telehealth on use of secondary care and mortality: findings from the Whole System Demonstrator cluster randomised trial’:
	www.bmj.com/content/344/bmj.e3874
	Department of Health modelling suggests there is the potential for £1.2 billion efficiency savings over the next five years if the numbers using telehealth increase to around 3 million. Estimates of impact will be refined in the coming months as the WSD research team report further findings on telecare, benefits for carers, and more on the benefits for patients with the specific diseases in the study.
	WSD clearly shows that using telehealth as an integral part of health and care services can help to reduce hospital admissions. The 3 million lives initiative is the Department's response to this very strong evidence which, with industry and national health service/social care partners, will drive the improvements in services, care and cost that are possible.

Walking: Children

Diane Abbott: To ask the Secretary of State for Health whether he plans to take steps to encourage more children to walk to school.

Daniel Poulter: The Department works across Government to promote walking to school as part of our overall approach to walking and cycling for travel purposes. Local areas also have an important role in encouraging parents and children to walk to school, where this will help to deliver local health priorities. To support this, we have been working with Living Streets to develop a series of case studies to help disseminate the successful Walk Once a Week (WoW) model. This builds upon the expansion of WoW to more than 700 primary schools across the country funded by the Department.